Children of the Lost Moon
by Suspicious Popsicle
Summary: Yuri glanced up at the sky. There were no stars to be seen from the city, but there was the moon. There was always the moon. It caught his eye far too easily, fascinating in the way the skeletal specimens of animals he'd seen in museums were: cold and bare, something long dead that hadn't been allowed to lay down and rest.
1. Moonlighting

A/N: While not exactly a fusion, this fic was HEAVILY influenced by Sailor Moon, particularly the story of the Moon Kingdom. It's a little bit different from what I normally write, and there are a lot of time skips between chapters, both backward and forward. Mostly, the chapter titles will let you know whether events are taking place in the main timeline or elsewhen.

This wouldn't have gotten finished without Bad0mens' encouragement. Thank you. =)

Disclaimer: The characters in this story are from _Tales of Vesperia_ and do not belong to me.

* * *

Though the sun had set hours ago, the city's streetlights and neon signs had been lit longer still and they exiled night's true darkness to a few rundown, secluded areas of town, places where glass-fronted skyscrapers and architecture of proud design gave way to the crumbling brick and mortar of ancient, cheaply built motels and boarded up storefronts. Eyes scanning the deep shadows of alleyways, Yuri Lowell walked Estelle Heurassein away from one such twilight block only a few hours before dawn would arrive.

"That was incredible," Estelle said. "The way you fight with such grace is amazing."

She looked up at him and smiled. The harsh fluorescent streetlights leeched her color away, leaving it to be replaced in flashes by the garish rainbow neon of the signs they passed. She was still pretty. She always had been, and she'd always been able to smile like that: honestly and earnestly, like she was happy with the whole world. It was a nice smile to have directed at you, and Yuri returned it with one of his own.

"You weren't so bad yourself."

"I still need practice, though."

"Everybody needs practice, even at the things they're good at. It helps you stay sharp."

Speaking of which….

"Have you noticed that we're being followed?" he asked quietly.

"What?"

She looked around, making it far too obvious that they had caught on. There were still a few things she needed to learn.

"Don't scare it off. It's a couple blocks back, behind the dumpster. One of those zippy little star things."

"Why is it only following us?"

"Don't know. But I'm going to put a stop to it."

"Wait." She laid a hand on his arm. "Let me."

Yuri smirked a little at that. "I thought you didn't like fighting."

"I don't, but…those monsters are coming after me. I can't force you and the others to fight my battles for me."

He'd thought it would be something like that. Estelle had a good heart and the strong will to back it up. He stopped walking and turned to face her.

"He's all yours."

"I'll do my best."

Turning, she started back the way they'd come. Soft as it was, Yuri could still hear her voice as he stayed behind to watch.

"I am the Child of the Full Moon, Princess Estellise."

Light like gentle moonbeams blossomed around her, bringing forth the person Estelle had been a long, long time ago. When the light faded, Estellise, the last princess of a fallen empire, stood, incongruous on the modern city streets in almost the same way as the monster she focused her gaze upon. She wore red and black, an outfit cut to mimic the garb of a knight. Her armor gleamed dully, but her sword—_that_ shone, light streaming along its length like a shooting star as she raised the blade.

Having been spotted, the creature left its hiding place and charged. Their kind was always plenty hostile, but thankfully armed more with speed than anything else. It was beyond strange that one of them had been following along so quietly when their usual instinct was to attack on sight.

Mindful that it might not be alone, Yuri kept his attention divided between the fight and the seemingly empty streets. Estellise didn't have its speed, but she had skill and magic and the intelligence to wield both judiciously against a foe that was little more than aggression given physical form.

She didn't have to worry about getting close enough to strike: the creature took care of that on its own as it rushed her. A well-timed Star Stroke stunned it, and Estellise pressed forward, getting in a glancing blow as the creature shook off that first hit. A little more wary now, the monster circled her, ridiculously fast on its stubby legs, searching for an opening.

Estellise didn't give it a chance. She'd been taught to always stay on guard against an opponent, and she had no trouble keeping an eye on the thing running circles around her. The problem was that she was going to get dizzy. Yuri frowned, wondering if he was going to have to step in, but Estellise spun suddenly in the opposite direction and brought her sword around in a flash, wounding it badly enough that its mobility was no longer a problem.

One last slash ended the fight, and the monster faded away, leaving no trace of itself in this world where it didn't belong. Estellise watched over it as it disappeared, then let the trappings of that other life fade away until she was Estelle once more, a normal girl in a simple dress and denim jacket. She rejoined Yuri quietly and they continued on their way.

After a few blocks, Yuri spoke up. "Enjoy your practice?"

"I don't understand what it was doing. It could have caught up to us at any time. Why follow us like that?"

"Maybe it wanted to find out where you live."

Solemnly, she nodded. "Yes. That's the conclusion I came to, as well. These monsters may be much smarter than we thought."

"Maybe."

Yuri glanced up at the sky. There were no stars to be seen from the city, but there was the moon. There was always the moon. Looking at it made him uneasy, these days. Before, he had thought it was pretty. Now, he wasn't sure what to call it. It still caught his eye far too easily, fascinating in the way the skeletal specimens of animals he'd seen in museums were: cold and bare, something long dead that hadn't been allowed to lay down and rest.

"And maybe it means they're taking orders from someone, after all," he said quietly.

He looked away from the moon, away from the entire unnatural night sky, in time to see Estelle shiver. He had worried her, but she had cause to be worried. Better to consider all the possibilities and do what they could to prepare than to be caught off guard later on.

"We'll have to tell the others tomorrow."

Yuri nodded and quickened his steps, hurrying them toward home. For him, that was an apartment on the eighth floor of one of the nicer buildings in the city. He lived there with his younger brother, Karol, and their dog, Repede. Estelle lived a few dozen floors up in the penthouse suite. Her parents owned the building, though their work kept them out of town as often as not. It was because of them that Yuri was able to live in the building at all.

Five years ago, when Yuri was fourteen and his brother Karol only seven, their parents had been killed in a car accident. With no relatives to take them in, they were bound for social services until Estelle's parents had come forward to foster them. Estelle and Yuri had been friends almost as long as Yuri and Flynn had, and their parents had known each other, as well. Whatever loyalty led them to the decision, it was the Heurasseins that allowed Yuri and Karol to stay together. At their insistence, Yuri had completed high school. After that, however, he had quit school and gotten a job, determined to stand on his own two feet and do whatever he could to take care of Karol. He needed a second job really, but with the unexpectedly complicated change his life had gone through a few months ago, that had become impossible. Maybe if they got to the bottom of why all those monsters had been coming after Estelle….

He accompanied her all the way up to her apartment, knowing he wouldn't be able to rest if he didn't see her safely home. He'd look in on Karol before turning in, as well. Yuri didn't like having to leave him alone so late at night, but with monsters popping up across the city with every moonrise, he had little choice. Besides, he wasn't exactly alone with Repede on watch.

Yawning, he thought again that it was a real pity monster hunting didn't pay, as it took up almost as much time as a second job, and certainly more energy. He could feel the time until dawn slipping away, taking with it the last vestiges of the exhilaration that had filled him as he fought. It was getting easier and easier to dispatch the strange creatures that hunted for Estelle every night, but the crash afterward hit hard. He tried and failed to stifle another yawn as the elevator reached the eighth floor and opened up to let him out.

Flynn was waiting outside his door.

"What on earth were you doing out so late?"

"What were you doing _up_ so late?" He didn't really need to ask. Flynn had probably been studying and happened to spot Yuri walking Estelle home.

"I was studying, which I'm certain is not what you were up to with Estelle."

He looked suspicious as hell, but he hadn't asked yet, and Yuri wasn't about to volunteer anything. He fixed Flynn with a smirk and waited him out. Flynn gave in first, as Yuri had known he would.

"Are you and Estelle going out?"

It was a completely understandable conclusion to draw based on what he'd seen, but it was so far off base that Yuri almost laughed in his face.

"Nope."

"Then what—"

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

Of course, that only bothered Flynn more. He scowled and resorted to fighting dirty.

"What about Karol? Should you really be leaving him alone at night?"

"Well, since you've made yourself king of the Neighborhood Watch, I figure if anything happens you'll be on top of it."

Bringing up Karol had been low, and Flynn knew it. Yuri did everything he could to take care of his brother, and it wasn't as if they lived in a bad area. Karol would be in a lot more danger if Yuri and his friends didn't spend their nights beating the hell out of monsters. Too bad that wasn't something he could share.

"Look, Flynn, I've got work in the morning. I'll see you later."

He turned his back on his best friend, hating all the craziness that had suddenly invaded his life and driven a wedge between them. Before everything had gone nuts, he'd been able to tell Flynn almost anything. Now, he was having to keep secrets that no sane person would believe, or at least, no sane person that didn't have the sort of past life memories Yuri did. Trouble was, Flynn ought to have memories like that too, and one of these days, whether Yuri liked it or not, they were going to surface. When that happened, there was no doubt that there were going to be questions about why Yuri hadn't told him.

Repede was waiting just inside and whuffed quietly in welcome. The dog stared at Flynn, still standing in the hall, until Yuri closed the door.

* * *

Flynn stood by helplessly as Yuri shut him out. The dog his friend had adopted a few months back stared at him with its one good eye, and Flynn could have sworn it was grinning. Normally, a dog person, Flynn couldn't bring himself to like Repede. Yuri had started acting weird when he'd found that dog, and Flynn couldn't shake the paranoid thought that Repede had something to do with the change in him. Ever since then, he'd been keeping odd hours: leaving late in the evening and staying out past midnight, skipping the judo class they took together, showing up late when they made plans to hang out, or sometimes not showing up at all. On a few occasions, he'd failed to even make it home to have dinner with Karol, something Yuri had insisted on ever since their parents had died years ago.

He had a new group of friends that seemed to be part of it, as well. Flynn hadn't met them officially, but he'd seen Yuri talking with them often enough at work or outside the apartment building. There were three of them: an older man who always looked slightly scruffy no matter how well-dressed he was, a woman with purple hair and a smile that Flynn didn't trust, and a younger girl who couldn't have been much older than Karol. They were a bizarre group, to be sure. Flynn could hardly imagine what they all had in common aside from Yuri.

Unexplained comings and goings, a strange new group of friends, ignoring Karol and Flynn, and to top it all off, Yuri was dragging Estelle into all his weirdness. The next time he had a minute alone with him, Flynn was going to get an explanation. He missed his friend.


	2. Three Months Earlier: Flynn

A/N: It seems like I'm always keeping Flynn in the dark, doesn't it? Oh, well. He got mostly pushed out of the main action in the game, too! \(^.^)/

Disclaimer: The characters in this story are from _Tales of Vesperia_ and do not belong to me.

* * *

Flynn came to a stop just outside the convenience store and adjusted the strap of his messenger bag as he tried to catch his breath. Although his college wasn't that far from where Yuri worked, it was far enough to make him feel a little foolish for running the distance when Yuri was just leaning against a light post, cool as you please, and smirking.

"Sorry…I'm late…. Lecture ran long."

"Hmm? Your favorite professor doesn't care that he's eating into the next teacher's class time?"

"There are no other classes. It's Friday afternoon. The campus closes early today."

"Yeah, yeah." Yuri pushed away from the light and fell into step beside Flynn as they headed toward the market. "Still pretty rude. Doesn't he realize his students might have plans?"

"We needed the time. There's a lot of material to cover in this class. Oh, I need to stop in at the bookstore."

"Surprise, surprise."

"Shut up. You should be glad one of us has some reading comprehension skills. How did Karol do on that literature test, by the way?"

"Aced it! Thanks for the help."

"Of course." Knowing that broaching the subject once more probably wouldn't earn him a favorable reaction, Flynn nevertheless gave it another try. "You know, you could probably be a lot more help to him yourself if you were taking a few classes."

"You already know what I'm going to say, so why bother bringing it up?"

"Don't you think it would be better in the long run? You could do so much more with your life—"

"Look, Flynn, it's great that you think so highly of me and all, but drop it. It's not gonna happen."

He sped up, leaving Flynn momentarily behind to sigh and wish for the umpteenth time that Yuri wasn't so stubborn about everything. He was letting his pride trip him up, and one day he was going to regret it.

Yuri changed the subject as they walked, talking about some of the customers he'd had to deal with or telling stories about what he and his coworkers got up to during slow stretches. Figuring he'd have other chances to make Yuri understand, Flynn let him talk. He liked listening to Yuri, liked seeing the way his expression changed one moment to the next as he got into what he was talking about. Yuri lit up when he was amused, laughter sparking like heat lightning in his eyes. He carried the conversation right up to the entrance of the bookstore where he hung back as Flynn made to enter.

"Aren't you coming?"

"I'll wait out here."

"All right."

It was a little strange, but Yuri had never been a big reader and he was probably wary of Flynn trying to talk him into higher education again. Shrugging it off, Flynn hurried to find the book he needed and get through the line, not wanting to keep him waiting again. When he left the store, Yuri was standing near the mouth of an alley, scratching below the chin of a large, wolfish dog.

"Did you make a new friend while I was in there?"

He stepped forward slowly, offering a hand palm up for the dog to smell, noting that the animal's left eye was scarred over. Taking the wag of the dog's tail as an invitation, Flynn patted it on the head.

"He's been following me around for a while. I'm thinking about taking him in."

Surprised, Flynn straightened up at that. "Are you sure that's wise?"

"It'll be fine. Repede's a good dog."

"You've named him?"

"Fits, don't you think?" He cocked his head to the side, looking to Repede, even though the question had been for Flynn. Kneeling, he ruffled the dog's fur.

"I suppose so. Are you sure you should bring him home? What if he bites Karol?"

"He won't."

"How can you be sure?"

Yuri smiled up at him. "Same way I know you're a good guy. Don't worry so much."

Obviously, Yuri had made up his mind. There was no arguing with him, particularly not when he was smiling like that.

"If you've decided, why haven't you brought him home yet?"

Smile fading, Yuri turned back to Repede, petting more gently. "Pet deposit's pretty steep. I don't have enough saved up."

Yuri probably hadn't even considered asking his foster parents to overlook the deposit or even just to lower it or allow him to pay in installments. Flynn knew he didn't like having to rely on them for anything, but his job didn't pay enough to support both himself and Karol. The only reason he even stayed in their apartment building was for his brother's sake.

"I can loan you a little," Flynn found himself saying.

"No. I'll handle it." His voice had been harsher than necessary, and he smiled crookedly as he stood, offering a quiet "Thanks" in apology as much as appreciation.

They continued on their way, the next stop before returning home being the grocery store. Flynn noticed Repede shadowing them, but the dog never made any trouble, never snapped at other pedestrians or caught up to beg for food or attention. It was almost as if he was watching over Yuri, and something about that thought was vaguely unsettling. Flynn did his best to stop glancing back over his shoulder and ignore the dog.

At the grocery store, Yuri picked up a few things he needed for that night's dinner. He tried to have at least one meal a day with Karol, and Flynn was a frequent guest, given his lifelong friendship with Yuri and lack of cooking skills. Estelle joined them regularly, as well, and Yuri would joke to her about being worried that living off a steady diet of TV dinners would turn Flynn into a couch potato. The teasing didn't really bother him, not when he was invited over several times a week for good company and a home cooked meal. Any arguments he and Yuri had on those nights were always lighthearted, and Flynn always left feeling full and satisfied in a way that couldn't be attributed simply to the food.

Even with all that, it wasn't until Yuri started changing that Flynn really began to appreciate how much he loved those dinners.

A week after he'd told Flynn about Repede, Yuri got quiet. He withdrew into himself and often got lost in thought. He was uncharacteristically soft-spoken at times, but then at other times, he would snap for no reason. At first, Flynn attributed it to nothing more than too much work and too little sleep, but as a few days passed and Yuri's mood failed to improve, he began to wonder if something else was going on.

Flynn asked about it one evening when Yuri was hanging out with him. They were sitting in Flynn's room. Normally, Yuri would be leaning against the wall next to the window, staring down at the streets below. That evening, he had taken a seat on the bed, his back to the streetlights and constant rush of traffic.

Bothered by how still Yuri was being, by how strange it was to be able to work on an assignment uninterrupted while he was around, Flynn set his pen aside and looked up from his notes.

"Is everything all right?"

Yuri smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. "Yeah. Why?"

"You've been acting strange lately."

He waved a hand at Flynn. "You're imagining things."

It wasn't his imagination, though. He'd known Yuri almost all his life. _Something_ was going on.

"How are things going with Repede?"

"Not enough yet. Next paycheck should do it. He says he doesn't mind waiting."

"You _talk_ to him?"

That was a new bit of craziness, and Yuri answered Flynn's incredulity with a grin.

"Sure. Most intelligent conversation I get around here."

He was asking for it with that comment, and Flynn was out of his seat in a second, knocking Yuri back on the bed as he tried to get a hold of him. They wrestled, trading insults and laughing, and for a few minutes, Yuri was back to his usual self. He squirmed out of Flynn's grip, time and again, shoving and kicking. Flynn never did pin him down long enough to get an apology for the comment that had set off the tussle, but by the time they broke apart and settled down, it didn't much matter anymore.

* * *

Almost two weeks later, Flynn was at Yuri's apartment for dinner when his friend's behavior became even stranger. Helping to clean up after the meal, Flynn carried a stack of dishes into the kitchen where Yuri was scrubbing out a pan in the sink. He had his sleeves shoved up to keep them out of the water, revealing a bandage wrapped tightly around several inches of his forearm. Flynn set the dishes aside, staring at Yuri's arm.

"What happened?"

"Just some roughhousing that got out of hand."

"_Repede_ did that to you?"

Flynn looked around, half expecting the dog to appear at the mention of his name. He'd been afraid that something like that would happen if Yuri took in the stray, but sometimes, there was just no making Yuri see sense.

"No. Repede didn't have anything to do with it. Look, don't worry, okay? I'm fine."

He didn't look fine. Studying the bandage closer, Flynn thought he could see dark splotches of blood that had seeped through the first layers.

"Have you been to a doctor?"

"Drop it."

Flynn had heard that tone too often during the past few weeks. It meant Yuri was done talking, and didn't care if Flynn wasn't. Convinced that he wasn't going to get anything else out of his friend that night, Flynn was surprised when Yuri insisted on going with him as he returned to his own apartment.

It wasn't a long walk. They didn't even have to go outside. Flynn lived three floors up and on the other side of the building. He'd moved in when he started college, eager to be away from his mother and looking forward to living closer to Yuri. Now, he was glad he'd done it, glad that it was so convenient for Yuri to follow him home, because Flynn could see it wouldn't take much for Yuri to decide talking wasn't worth it after all.

They waited for the elevator in silence, though Yuri couldn't seem to hold still. He shifted restlessly, face blank except for the occasional flash of annoyance or anxiety. Flynn tried to wait patiently for him to speak up, but he remained quiet for the short ride up. As he watched Yuri's blurry reflection on the elevator doors, Flynn caught him opening his mouth to talk a few times. In the end, however, he chose not to speak. He held his peace all the way to Flynn's door, and nearly walked off without having said a single word before Flynn grabbed his wrist.

"Wait. Do you want to come in for a bit?"

Although it was the last thing he should have been thinking of, Flynn couldn't help seeing how the gesture and his invitation could be misconstrued as something else entirely. He knew the neighbors gossiped about the two of them almost as much as they gossiped about Yuri and Estelle. Not wanting to give any prying eyes more fodder for the rumor mill, he let go of Yuri's wrist, curling his fingers around the fading warmth.

The smile Yuri gave him was a pale imitation of his usual grins. "Nah. I'd better get back." He turned away and waved over his shoulder. "See you."

Things had only gotten worse since that night. Yuri's behavior became increasingly strange as he drifted away from the people he was closest to in favor of his new, mismatched group of friends. Estelle was the only person out of their little group that Yuri didn't pull away from, and Flynn was almost convinced that was worse. It was one thing for a man to be wandering the streets late at night, but a girl ought to be safe at home.

Flynn didn't understand what either of them was thinking anymore, though he couldn't shake the feeling sometimes that he ought to have the answer. It left him feeling incredibly frustrated and also terribly powerless.


	3. Moonrise

A/N: Names are extremely important in this story. I've used them to differentiate between the characters' modern, everyday selves and their transformed states. That's going to come into play from here on out.

Disclaimer: The characters in this story are from _Tales of Vesperia_ and do not belong to me.

* * *

Yuri was in the middle of ringing up a customer when Flynn walked into the store. He waved a greeting, but didn't interrupt. Not sure if Yuri had noticed him, he began wandering the store to kill time. Yuri's shift wouldn't be over for another twenty minutes or so, and Flynn had known that stopping by right after class would mean he would have to wait around. He didn't really mind. It was worth it to walk home together. Between Flynn's classes and Yuri's work and secrets, they didn't see each other as often anymore.

That night, Flynn was going over to Yuri's apartment to tutor Karol and have dinner with the brothers. Afterward, if Yuri didn't do one of his disappearing acts, maybe they would actually have a chance to talk.

As he flipped idly through a magazine, Flynn saw one of Yuri's new friends—the woman with the purple hair, the only one of the three who actually seemed to be about Yuri's age—come walking in. She spotted him as well, and flashed him a quick smile on her way to the counter. As soon as Yuri saw her, he called one of his coworkers to take over for him and stepped around the counter to talk to her. Flynn watched the whole thing with a frown. Yuri hadn't even acknowledged him, but he was taking a break to chat with a girl? Since when had he taken up flirting?

Irritation turned swiftly to concern as Flynn watched Yuri's smirk disappear in an eye blink. It seemed like the conversation had turned serious and he started toward the front, wondering what was going on. He made it in time to hear Yuri call in a favor from the boy behind the counter, as he grabbed the backpack he'd stashed beneath the register. Yuri had asked his coworker to cover the store until the next shift arrived. That really shook Flynn. Yuri might have been acting strange lately, but he wasn't completely irresponsible. He wouldn't be leaving work early without a very good reason.

"Is everything all right?"

"Flynn. I need a favor."

There wasn't any surprise in Yuri's expression or tone to indicate he hadn't known Flynn had been there all along. Why then, had he been so eager to talk to someone he barely knew after ignoring his oldest friend?

Yuri pulled out his wallet and passed Flynn a couple bills. "Something's come up, and I can't make it for dinner. Order a pizza for you and Karol. I'll be back as soon as I can."

He started to follow the woman out, but Flynn caught his wrist and pulled him up short.

"Wait. What's going on?"

"Sorry, Flynn. I gotta run."

Shaking off Flynn's hand, Yuri took off out the door. Intent on following him, Flynn was only a few steps behind until the clerk called out: "You gotta pay for that!" and he realized he was still carrying the magazine he'd been leafing through. By the time he'd put it back, Yuri was long gone. Flynn hadn't even seen what direction he'd taken off in, and there was no sense in trying to track him down. With a sigh, he pocketed the money Yuri had given him and set out to let Karol know that his brother had ditched them. Again.

* * *

"Aww, man! He said he was gonna make spaghetti tonight!"

Karol crossed his arms and scowled, but the childish roundness still noticeable in his face drained most of the anger out of the expression and made it look like he was pouting. Forcing back a smile, Flynn held out his palms and shrugged.

"I'm sorry. He didn't even tell me what was going on. He did give me money for pizza, though. If you like, we can spend that at the arcade instead, and have some fun without him. Then, I can make us some spaghetti later." How hard could it be?

"Uh, n-no thanks. Pizza sounds great, actually."

Flynn shrugged. In his experience, petty revenge was one of the few things that got through to Yuri, but if Karol wanted pizza, pizza it would be. He went ahead and called it in as Karol tried to find his literature textbook in the massive bag that held his school supplies.

"So…what's your brother been up to, lately?"

"I dunno. He doesn't tell me about it."

Karol had noticed, too. Obviously, Yuri wasn't concerned with being subtle, not that Flynn should have expected any different from him. He was both relieved and annoyed to hear that Yuri hadn't bothered to fill Karol in, either. It meant that, whatever he was hiding, he was hiding it from everyone he was close to, rather than just Flynn, but that also meant that there would be no helpful information forthcoming.

Belatedly realizing that Yuri's new pet hadn't put in an appearance, Flynn glanced around the living room, wondering if he could have simply overlooked the dog if he was napping in a corner.

"Where's Repede?"

"Oh, he took off a little while ago."

"Took off?"

"Yeah, he knows how to use the fire escape." Talking about Repede seemed to be cheering Karol up a bit, even though the dog had apparently abandoned him for the evening much as his brother had. "He's really smart! He can get in and out on his own if we leave the window cracked enough for him to push it up."

"Does he do that often?"

"Yeah. Yuri says a big dog like him needs some space to run. He says that since Repede always comes back, that we should just let him do what he likes."

"Oh, yeah? What's he say about leash laws?" Flynn muttered. He shook his head and got Karol started on homework.

When Karol was distracted reading through a selection of the text, Flynn slipped away and tried calling Yuri's cell again. The phone rang and rang until his answering service picked up, just like it had every other time Flynn called while Yuri was off being mysterious. He ended the call without leaving a message, although it had been tempting to say something along the lines of: 'Your brother misses you.' He was sick of dealing with Yuri running off for no apparent reason. It felt like there was something he could be doing—_ought_ to be doing—but he had no idea what. If Yuri continued acting the way he had been for the past month, Flynn was either going to get an explanation or kick his ass. Maybe both.

_Yes_, he thought, catching the unhappy glance Karol threw at the door. _Both would be good._

* * *

"That's the fourth time he's called. Wouldn't it be easier to turn your phone off?"

Judy smiled as she spoke. She always smiled, a display of quiet certainty that Yuri felt probably ran about as deep as his own cockiness. He liked Judy. She was a sort of kindred spirit. That didn't mean the pointed comments she hid behind polite inquiry were any less annoying, sometimes.

"When I want it off, I'll turn it off. Where did you say these things were?"

He took a corner a step behind her, his speed bringing him around in a wide arc. They were racing down the increasingly deserted sidewalk, weaving around pedestrians as best they could. It would have been easier with the added strength of their old lives, but the outfits that came with those personas were entirely too flashy.

"Not far, now. I'm keeping in touch with Raven. They've lured the monsters toward the old warehouse district. Estellise had asked that we not bother you at work, but there are rather a lot of them this time." Her smile broadened into something Yuri could relate to even better. "I didn't want you to miss out on all the fun."

"You're too good to me."

When Judy had shown up at the store, Yuri had assumed she was just there to let him know everyone was going to be getting together to trade information. He'd been shocked to hear that the monsters they'd been battling almost nightly had made an appearance during the day. Repede had tracked them down as they began emerging from the shadows, and called Estelle's attention to the situation. She had proceeded to call everyone except for him, which was frankly a little insulting. It wasn't bragging to say that he was the best fighter in the group.

It wasn't bragging, but he wasn't about to say so in front of Judy. He was pretty sure he could beat her, but with monsters appearing while it was still daylight, they didn't exactly have time to find out for certain.

"Did anyone see the monsters?"

"Of course." She laughed when he swore. "If it makes you feel any better, the sightings were brief enough that I'm sure most people will convince themselves that they saw a normal animal."

Things were getting worse. First, the monsters started following them home, now they were appearing before nightfall. If they didn't figure out why these things were suddenly coming after Estelle, it wasn't going to be long before the whole city got pulled into the mess. It felt like history was trying to repeat itself, and Yuri put on a burst of speed, trying to outrun that thought and the accompanying memories.

"Fatal Lancer of the New Moon, I am Judith the Dragoon."

Her voice carried easily to Yuri's ears, clear and proud. A moment later, Judith rushed by, spear in hand, antennae trailing behind her. Gone were the jeans and blouse she'd been wearing before, replaced by an outfit of white, blue and gold that showed considerably more skin. She glanced back just long enough for Yuri to see her wink.

"I'll be going on ahead."

She was yards distant in no time, and Yuri knew he couldn't catch up the way he was. If Judy had transformed, it meant they were close to where the battle would be taking place. Yuri didn't much like the feeling of being someone else that came over him while he was transformed, but if he wanted to be able to protect anything, he would have to put up with it.

"Here we go again." He drew a breath, heart thundering, feet pounding over the pavement, as he drew the blastia cuff out of his backpack and slipped it onto his wrist. "Dark Enforcer of the Lunar Empire, I am Brave Vesperia!"

_The sound of swords meeting in combat rang through the otherwise peaceful gardens. The bushes rustled in the wind, their branches laden with snowy white camellias that bobbed like so many excited spectators. Gravel scrunched underfoot—scritch, scritch, crunch, skriiit—as Vesperia pressed relentlessly forward. He wasn't giving the fight his all, but neither was he going easy on his opponent. She wanted to learn how to fight and, as far as he was concerned, that was very much a good thing. He was determined that she learn everything he knew, and he wasn't going to go about teaching her in half measures, no matter how often he was lectured for being too rough with the crown princess of the Lunar Empire. Estellise would learn to fight, and she would learn to win, but she was going to do her fair share of losing along the way._

"_Don't lower your guard!" He brought his blade down in a blur of steel, which she barely managed to block. "Protect yourself until you spot an opening."_

"_You don't give me very many." She was watching him closely, studying him, reading him like one of her books, but she hadn't learned his tells yet and a Wolf Strike sent her reeling backward._

"_You're my opponent. I don't owe you a damn thing." _

_He smirked at her as their blades locked. They'd been at this for over an hour already. She was out of breath, bruised, scraped, covered in dirt and stains, and readying to meet his next attack. She hardly looked the part of a sheltered princess, and Vesperia approved. Estellise may be gentle by nature, but she was also the determined sort that wouldn't give up once she'd set her mind to something. She would need that when she ascended to the throne. Intelligence and compassion were fine traits in a leader, but they didn't mean anything if that leader could be cowed by less scrupulous individuals trying to claw their way into power. Estellise would make a fine empress one day._

_Vesperia unleashed a succession of Azure Blast attacks that forced her back into a camellia bush. To her credit, she didn't accuse him of cheating by using more advanced artes than a novice generally had to worry about countering. The implications of the lesson were probably clear to her: enemies could not be counted on to fight fair._

_Pausing a moment, he waited to see if she could free herself from the branches. When it became apparent that he had won the match, he stepped forward to offer her a hand. It was his mistake._

"_Star Stroke!"_

_Estellise's surprise attack knocked Vesperia off his feet. He landed hard on his ass on the gravel and felt his palms begin to sting from the scrapes almost immediately. Initially shocked, he recovered quickly, and laughed as he stood and dusted himself off._

"_I deserved that. Good job."_

"_Thank you."_

_She was still having trouble freeing herself from the bush, and he stepped in to offer a hand, confident that the match was actually over. He was helping pick petals and leaves out of her hair, when a familiar voice spoke up from behind._

"_Really, Vesperia? You can't beat me, so you resort to fighting your sister?"_

_Estellise's smile outshone the sun. "Fionn!"_

Vesperia staggered and pulled his scarf more securely up over the lower half of his face. He didn't stop running. The transformation had invigorated him, and he picked up the pace, shaking off the disorientation from the memory that had flooded his mind along with the power of the change. No matter how many times that happened, he didn't think he would ever get used to it. There were monsters to be slain, however, so he pushed the thoughts of his old life to the back of his mind, intent on the impending fight.

He could hear the melee before he reached it, the growls of monsters and shouted spells sounding unbelievably loud through the maze of deserted streets in the rundown section of the city. Thinking that it was a wonder they hadn't drawn a crowd by the sheer amount of noise, Vesperia turned a corner and ran right into chaos.

The chirpees were the first monsters he saw. A flock of dozens of them flitted through the battle, their sheer numbers causing them to get in the way of attacks from enemy and ally alike. Weak individually, they were increasingly difficult to deal with in large numbers, and swarmed around Raven, keeping his arrows from targeting the more dangerous creatures. Bees and drill beaks darted through the muddle of enemies. Stronger and more intelligent, they targeted Vesperia's comrades, clustering most thickly around Estellise. A pair of horse raptors circled the fight, swooping in to attack when opportunities presented themselves, then moving back out of reach.

Vesperia took in the scene in a moment before charging in. He fought his way directly to Estellise's side, carving a path through the monsters that filled in as soon as he had passed.

"Nice of you to join us," Rita snapped. Her scarf lashed out, finding its mark and downing a chirpee.

"My invitation arrived late."

"Prob'ly not th' time for infightin', kids. In case ya hadn' noticed, we're a little outnumbered."

"Oh?" Judith dashed by, her spear whirling so fast in a circle that it created the illusion of a full moon behind her profile. "And here I thought we'd finally gotten a fight with interesting odds."

Interesting was one word for it. Vesperia barely had time to think between one monster and the next. He fought entirely on instinct, sinking into the flow of the battle and letting every other thought fade from his mind. There was no room for anything except the next attack, the need to dodge or defend. There was no time for small victories. As soon as one creature had been felled, he was facing down another, cutting through their numbers with ruthless precision.

He moved to keep his distance from the others. When he was so focused on the battle, they became a distraction, obstacles to be avoided, concerns that pulled his attention away from what lay at the end of his blade. Although he knew all of them were capable fighters, there was always the chance that things could go wrong, that one misstep on their part or a lucky slash from an enemy could turn the tide and take someone down. It was easier to forget that, easier to trust everyone else's skills when they remained at the edges of his perception.

Repede was the only one he didn't mind fighting side-by-side with. The dog was quick enough to dodge any of Vesperia's attacks that might stray off the mark, and the two of them simply worked well together. Their old partnership hadn't been weathered down by the passing of time or the strange limbo they had found themselves caught in. On the contrary, when they faced down enemies together, it was as if no time had passed at all.

Eventually, Rita and Estellise's voices reached him through his narrow focus, and he knew they needed help. While he had been whittling down the flock's number, more and more of the bees had fled his reach. They were converging on Estellise, swarming her, and even though Rita was by her side and Judith was keeping the horse raptors at bay, it wasn't going to be enough. Swatting away chirpees, Vesperia raced back to his sister's side.

"Done playing with small fry?" Rita's scarf snapped out, barely missing him as she aimed for a drill beak that had chased him back to the party.

"I was just getting warmed up."

The bees had marked him as something particularly dangerous, and were trying to keep out of his reach as they targeted Estellise. His Wailing Havoc arte gave him the height and range to reach them anyway, and he methodically chased down the ones that the girls couldn't get to. Repede helped as well, leaping into the air to drag his prey down and finish it off.

Slowly, the tide changed, and Vesperia found that the enemy's numbers were no longer so overwhelming. The birds had thinned out enough to allow Raven to help Judith against the remaining horse raptor, and Vesperia, Estellise, and Rita were finding that they had some small space to breathe between opponents. Once again, Vesperia broke away. It was easier to fight when he wasn't in such close quarters with the others, and he took to picking off monsters that had fallen back to watch and wait for a chance.

It wasn't long before the streets grew quiet once more, save one final bee that was finally getting the message that it had picked a fight it couldn't win. It turned in the air and buzzed off, but Vesperia was right behind it. None of these creatures could be allowed to escape into the city. He was almost upon it when something whizzed past his ear. In the next second, an arrow struck the bee and exploded. Vesperia threw an arm up over his eyes as heat buffeted his skin. Cursing Raven and blinking away blind spots, he turned back to glare.

"I had it."

Raven shrugged. "I had it quicker."

"Both of you had better cut it out! We've got bigger problems right now."

"Rita's right." Judith stepped up next to Estellise, looking down at her thoughtfully. "For instance…how did the monsters manage to appear during the day?"

Estellise looked up into a sky only just going orange with the sunset. The faded moon hung pale and distant above them, and her expression as she stared at it was pensive and unsure. "I think…it might be the clouds. It's possible the moonlight is strong enough to make it to the clouds, and that's where the doorway opened up. I'm not sure, though. There's simply too much we don't know."

"Explains why all of them were flying types." Vesperia stepped up to her side and laid a hand on her shoulder. She smiled up at him, but it was a poor effort at cheer. She was worried. They all were.

Rita stepped forward, hands on her hips. "Clearly, we need more information if we're going to win this fight for good. I want to try and figure out _exactly_ what's going on and come up with a plan to stop it."

As the rest of them nodded, Vesperia felt Estellise sag a little beneath his hand. He squeezed her shoulder, and stepped forward. Distantly, he could hear approaching sirens.

"I'm all for ending this, but this isn't best time to stand around talking about it. For now, let's get out of here. We can meet up again another day."

"Fine." Rita smiled thinly. "It's about time we went on the offensive."

Just before they scattered and went their separate ways, Vesperia remembered the incident from a few nights ago.

"Wait. Watch yourselves on your way home. Estelle and I caught a monster following us back to the apartment a few nights ago."

"So, either the beasties are smarter than we thought…."

Judith stepped in to finish Raven's guess. "…or someone is giving them orders."

It was an idea that had already occurred to Vesperia and Estellise, but the entire group was silent for a moment, considering what that meant for them. They exchanged a few quiet goodbyes and slipped away back into the city.

Letting Vesperia fade back into history, Yuri became himself once more. It was a relief, but it also made him feel…less. He was tired, suddenly, and the world around him seemed darker, more muted. He wouldn't have stood a chance against one of those monsters as he was. Well, maybe a filifolia, if he had a bat or something. He wasn't _helpless_ without his alter ego, after all.

The others had already gone their separate ways, leaving him, Repede, and Estelle to walk home together. Estelle was quiet, which was unusual, but Yuri assumed that the appearance of monsters before nightfall and in such a big horde must have been weighing on her. She'd seen one world destroyed and didn't want this one pulled into the lingering problems of that forgotten empire.

It wasn't until they were walking into the apartment building that Estelle spoke.

"Flynn saw us."

Yuri froze, feeling suddenly sick. "During the fight?"

"No. Just now, from his window." She and Repede both glanced back, waiting for him to fall into step once more.

"I'll talk to him."

He wasn't going to have any choice. He'd forgotten that Flynn might be watching for their return, or at least for his. After running out on him earlier and leaving him to watch Karol, Yuri was probably in for a lecture. It would be a miracle if Flynn wasn't waiting in ambush by the time he made it to his apartment.

They were quiet again as they walked through the lobby. Repede's claws clicked loudly across the floor, echoing through the room. Yuri directed them to the elevator that went all the way to the penthouse, though Estelle had told him before that he didn't need to see her right to her door. She turned her key in the elevator without protest and waited for the doors to close before speaking.

"Yuri…do you think it's unfair to keep this from Flynn?"

"It's your decision."

"You make it sound simple, as if whatever I chose wouldn't be wrong, but don't you sometimes wish to have your normal life back? Don't you ever regret being pulled into all of this?"

He met her eyes, wanting her to know that, however offhand his answer to her first question, he was taking the discussion seriously.

"I don't regret being able to help you. Flynn probably wouldn't either, but, like you said, this isn't exactly a normal life. I can't answer for him, and we can't ask him without making the question moot. Right now we don't need him to fight, but you're the one missing out the most by leaving things as they are."

"He was your friend, too."

That hadn't been what Yuri meant, though, and he let the conversation lapse as he watched the rising numbers on the elevator's display. He'd said it was Estelle's decision, and he would abide by whichever choice she made but…he couldn't help hoping that the day would never come when Flynn's memories surfaced. While Estelle was concerned for Flynn's happiness, Yuri's reasons for wanting him to remain ignorant of the past were far less noble. It was an incredibly selfish wish, and pretty unlikely, to boot. He was lucky just to have Flynn as a friend, and he would have to content himself with that.


	4. Three Months Earlier: Yuri

A/N: Yuri's version of the events presented in chapter 2.

Disclaimer: The characters in this story are from _Tales of Vesperia_ and do not belong to me.

* * *

That dog was hanging out around the convenience store again. Yuri had been seeing him in the area for a couple days. He never bothered anybody and Yuri didn't get the feeling that he was aggressive, so he hadn't paid much attention aside from asking a few of his coworkers if they owned the dog or knew who did.

He'd learned that the dog was a stray and, with nothing better to do, he decided to go out and share his lunch that day. For an animal that fended for itself on the streets, the dog had surprisingly good table manners. He didn't beg and he didn't try to take anything that Yuri didn't offer him. When Yuri finished eating, the dog reared up on his hind legs, planting its front paws on Yuri's chest as it licked his face. Laughing, Yuri ruffled his fur, wondering why it felt more like he'd been reunited with an old friend rather than made a new one.

He named the dog Repede. It just came to him out of the blue that day, an odd name that somehow seemed like the only fitting one to use. As he left Repede and went back to work, he wondered if he could afford to have a dog.

The rest of Yuri's shift flew by in a blur of customers. He couldn't see Repede through the front window, but the dog was there when he left that evening, watching him as he started on his way home. Yuri half expected Repede to actually follow him, and was a little disappointed when he didn't.

That night, Yuri began having strange dreams: dreams about a city built of shining white stone and magic, about a garden filled with white flowers of all kinds, about fighting to prove himself and protect those he held dear, about a girl who smiled like the sun and a boy whose eyes mirrored the sky. He dreamed about all that, and he dreamed about loss. He woke up reaching out for someone who wasn't there as tears streamed down his face.

* * *

A few days later, Flynn met Repede. He seemed to like the dog well enough, but he also thought Yuri's interest in taking him in wasn't the best idea. Repede liked Flynn, too, which was a good sign. If Yuri was going to adopt him, they were going to be seeing plenty of each other. He decided to bring Karol by to meet him, as well. It was only fair to make sure his brother was on board with the idea of having such a large dog share their apartment, not that he really thought Karol would object.

As usual, Repede watched over him as he started on his way home, but didn't actually follow him all the way to the apartment building. Flynn had caught on that the dog was shadowing them, but pretended not to notice. He let Yuri talk, though it couldn't have been all that interesting to listen to retail anecdotes. He was probably just being polite, which was sort of weird when he did that to Yuri.

Flynn was polite to most people, but Yuri wasn't most people. They'd known each other since they were kids and had been nearly inseparable until they'd graduated high school and started going their separate ways. When Flynn had moved into the building, it had helped them hold on to that closeness. Rather than seeing each other at school everyday, they ate dinner together several nights a week and had joined a judo class. Flynn stopped by on his way home from school to walk back with Yuri when their schedules allowed, and he even came over to tutor Karol in subjects Yuri had never been good with.

Still, there were stretches of days now where they didn't see each other, and Yuri actually found that he was a little grateful for that. He'd started thinking about Flynn in a different light shortly after they'd entered high school. Thinking that it might only be hormones, he'd kept quiet, not wanting to make things awkward between them over a passing crush. His interest hadn't waned, however, and he'd never quite worked out the best way to deal with it. As far as he knew, Flynn was straight. Yuri had certainly never seen him look twice at a guy. He told himself that he could be happy just staying friends and that it was stupid to expect anything more. It hurt sometimes, though, and he couldn't shake the little voice in his head that called him a coward for not speaking up.

The tiny bit of distance he'd gained from Flynn after high school had given him a chance to see if his feelings would fade as they started to drift apart a little. When they remained as strong as ever, he knew that he was eventually going to have to say something. Yuri had never run away from anything just because he was afraid, and he wasn't about to start. It was a bit different when a lifelong friendship was at stake, though, so he'd been trying to figure out what to say and when to say it for a while.

Every time he hesitated, the little voice that called him a coward got slightly louder. He could hear it that day as he walked home with Flynn, close enough that he could have reached out and wrapped his fingers around Flynn's, and he knew that soon, ready or not, he was going to reveal everything, no matter the consequences.

* * *

The weird dreams continued nightly. Sometimes, the girl in his dreams looked like Estelle and the boy looked like Flynn. Sometimes they were strangers that Yuri was certain he knew.

More people populated the dreams: an older man skilled with the bow, a young girl well versed in the magic of the city, and a woman with knowledge in her smile and a taste for action. There was a dog, too, a constant companion of unquestionable loyalty. On some nights, Yuri dreamed of fighting alongside them against something impossibly huge and hungry. It was something dark and powerful and old, something that could devour worlds and still be unsatisfied. Always in those nightmares, he knew that they would not win against that terrible appetite.

Thankfully, most of his dreams were not so unpleasant. He dreamed often of a sister who was not his sister, and a friend he loved more than a brother. He dreamed of fighting with and against them, of playing and growing stronger together. He dreamed of the warmth of her regard and of his hand and would sometimes wake, missing them terribly, though he couldn't put a name or face to either.

The dreams felt increasingly real to him as more and more details emerged, and he began to wonder if he wasn't going a little crazy. On several occasions, he reached for a sword he didn't have as he got out of bed in the morning. He started scanning crowds and studying the faces of customers, looking for the people from his dreams.

More than a week after they'd started, Yuri told Estelle about the dreams. As soon as he began describing them, her smile disappeared. She recounted details of some of the people and places he mentioned like she recognized them, even going so far as to ask if certain individuals had appeared in the dreams before he'd said anything about them. Fearing that something was very wrong, and anticipating that he just might be about to learn something incredibly important, he trailed off.

Estelle was visibly upset. "I'm so sorry. I didn't want anyone else to have to worry about all of that."

"All of what? They're just dreams."

He wasn't sure he really believed that anymore, though. Not after how real the dreams had become. Not after Estelle's reaction to hearing about them. She shook her head slowly.

"They aren't dreams. They're memories—Vesperia's memories."

The name sent a shock right through him, and brought his dreams vividly to mind. He knew that name. Suddenly, he realized that his hands had started shaking and he clenched his fists, trying to hide it.

"Who is Vesperia?"

"You were."

With that, she launched into the story. She told him about Vesperia and the Lunar Empire—she told him his _dreams_—taking him through the events and meetings and partings until she reached the end, the battle with that terrible, devouring monster: the Adephagos. She told him about how all the people he'd been seeing in his sleep had fought against the Adephagos, and about how they had been able to seal it away but not defeat it. It had been too late for the Empire and its citizens, however. The Adephagos had destroyed everything, swallowing up even the Empire's place in history.

When she finished, they sat quietly on her bed. It still didn't feel entirely real to Yuri, but he couldn't deny that it somehow rang _true_. He was the first to break the silence.

"You were Estellise."

"Yes."

"My sister."

"Yes."

She had taken him in twice, then: twice given him a home and a family after he had lost his own.

"And Flynn, he was there with us."

"Yes. He was Fionn."

Her fiancée.

"Does he…?"

"He hasn't remembered yet. No one else has that I'm aware of. I haven't wanted to tell anyone. It's so peaceful here. I didn't want to take that away."

Yuri laid a hand on her head, ruffling her hair gently as she leaned sideways against him. They didn't speak again until he got up to leave some time later. He had a lot to think about.

* * *

The knowledge that his dreams were more than just products of his imagination kept Yuri distracted for the next couple of weeks. He kept remembering details and he couldn't tell if they were from the dreams or the past. For days, he relived events that hadn't actually happened to him, but to someone he used to be, watching memories that played out like movies in his mind's eye.

He remembered growing up as an adopted member of the imperial family. He remembered Estellise and her mother had always been happy to have him, even though it had taken much longer for the rest of the nobility to honestly accept him. He'd had lessons from Estellise's tutors, though he'd skipped out on those as often as he could manage. He remembered long days spent playing in the gardens or running through the halls of the palace. He remembered being so happy and so proud to have the love and trust of Estellise and her mother, and he remembered being determined to make them proud of him in return. He'd studied hard on his own and he'd mastered the use of a sword. He'd done everything he could to support Estellise and protect the empire that she would one day rule, and through it all, Fionn had been there by his side.

He'd met Fionn one day when he had snuck out of the palace to play in the city, and the two of them had quickly become fast friends. Fionn was hard working and true and, although he had a short temper, Yuri—or rather, Vesperia—had no problems getting into the occasional fight with him, even though Fionn was the only person who could ever beat him. It was Fionn's father who had taught both of them how to use a sword, and, when the Council stepped in to keep Estellise from joining them, Vesperia had taken to teaching her, himself.

It was through Vesperia that Fionn had met Estellise. The three of them had been as close a group of friends as any, but then Vesperia had developed feelings for Fionn, and Fionn had begun courting Estellise, and a rift had begun to form between them. Vesperia had never spoken of his feelings: not out of fear, but out of respect for his friend and a wish for his sister to be happy. The two of them had been about to announce their engagement when the Adephagos came upon their world.

Now, with everything that he had learned and remembered and all the little coincidences that were starting to make it seem like history would repeat itself, Yuri wasn't sure he ought to say anything about what he felt for his best friend. If Flynn and Estelle were somehow destined to be together, speaking up would only dull their happiness. He knew Estelle well enough to know that she would feel bad for him if he were to be rejected, even if that rejection came from the man she loved.

On the other hand, they had all been given a second chance. Who was to say things wouldn't turn out differently? What if Flynn didn't turn him down? There was a chance, wasn't there? There was some hope…wasn't there?

Fed up with the uncertainty, Yuri made his decision one night as he was going out for a jog in the park. Flynn was supposed to eat dinner with him and Karol the next evening. When he left, Yuri would walk him back to his apartment and tell him how he felt straight out, no more wasting time trying to figure out how to word it, no more waiting for a chance to create itself. With that resolution came a burst of nervous energy, and he ran an extra lap through the park to burn it off. It was a good thing he did.

As he was nearing the center of the park, he heard a shout and immediately recognized the voice as Estelle's. Leaving the path, he took off into the trees where growls and strange noises were sounding from the darkness. He heard Estelle call out a thank you—to _Repede_, it sounded like—and he yelled her name, wondering what the hell was going on. Before he found Estelle, however, _something_—something that had leaves _and a face_—found him.

It lunged at him and he managed to punch it on its nose as he stumbled backward, falling to the ground. Another weird creature had tripped him up. This one looked like someone had turned a squirrel into a water balloon and filled it with jell-o. It regarded him for a moment, then sunk its teeth into his arm. With a shout, Yuri shook it off, sending it bouncing away into the darkness, but tearing his arm open in the process. He heard barking and suddenly Repede appeared, ramming into the first creature as it came after Yuri once more. Scrambling to his feet, he watched in disbelief as Repede dispatched the monster with a knife. The dog was using a knife to fight. Yuri clenched a hand around his injured arm, and the pain reassured him that he wasn't dreaming this time.

A creature like an armored deer came crashing through the trees, pursued by Estelle. She wasn't the Estelle Yuri knew, however. This girl wore armor and carried a sword. Her typical cheerful smile had been replaced with an expression of grim purpose, and she slashed at the beast, cutting it down. She turned to Yuri, and he was beyond relieved to find that he could still recognize his old friend in her eyes.

"Yuri! Are you all right?"

"Yeah, sure. What's—"

There was a rustle in the bushes behind Estelle, and Yuri suddenly remembered the squirrel thing that had gotten away. He was moving before he could even see it, and grabbed it as it launched itself off a tree at Estelle. It wiggled furiously, biting and clawing as it tried to get free.

"Now what?"

"Drop it!"

The thing caught a lock of his hair in its teeth and severed it with a sound like scissors. Yuri threw it away from himself and Repede was on it in a second. He let the dog take care of it, and turned once more to Estelle.

"What the hell—?"

"Monsters. I'm afraid there's not much time to explain."

As a deep growl sounded through the trees, she reached into a bag hung from her belt and pulled out a heavy cuff bracelet that shone dull gold in the faint light. It felt familiar in Yuri's hands as he accepted it and ran his fingers over its surface. The red gems set into the metal glinted with an inner light.

"If you want to fight, put it on and state your title."

"My title?"

"Quickly! If you plan on staying, you'll need Vesperia's strength."

Vesperia…. What had he called himself in the dreams? There had been a title he'd taken on while defending the Empire from evils of its own creation.

Sliding his hand through the cuff, the words he needed rang loud in Yuri's head.

"Dark Enforcer of the Lunar Empire, I am Brave Vesperia!"

"_Ready for some practice?"_

_Vesperia leaned into Estellise's study, expecting to see her sitting at her desk, nose buried in a book. Instead, she was standing on the small balcony, gazing out across the empire she would one day rule. She spun to face him, as joyful as he had ever seen her, and raced across the room to take his hand. There was a flower tucked into her hair above her left ear, a wildflower with beautiful blue violet petals. It wasn't a flower that grew in the palace gardens, and Vesperia began to get an idea about what—or rather, _who_—had put his sister in such a good mood._

"_Have you seen him? Did he tell you?"_

"_See who? Your tutor? He lectured me again this morning about not wasting your time with swordplay."_

"_Vesperia! All you ever think about is fighting! Have you seen Fionn?"_

"_Not today. What's he done that's got you so excited?"_

_It shouldn't have been possible, but somehow her smile got even wider. "You're the first person I'll get to tell! The official announcement will be made tomorrow evening at the banquet. Vesperia…Fionn and I are engaged!"_

_He went still as she threw her arms around him and squeezed. So, they were finally making it official. He'd known this was coming for some time, but the news still hit hard and made it difficult to smile for her. Luckily, she was too full of her happiness to notice that he wasn't joining in. He was glad for that. She deserved to be happy, and he'd be the lowest kind of scum to spoil that out of his own hopeless desires. He hugged her around the shoulders and kissed the top of her head. When he congratulated her, he put as much warmth into the word as he could. He twirled her as he started to leave, making her skirts flare out and keeping her from being able to get a good look at him._

_Eventually he would congratulate her honestly, her and her beloved both. First, though, there was something he had to do. He ran his fingers lightly over the hilt of his sword and went looking for Fionn._

Gasping, he stumbled and squeezed his eyes shut against the sudden dizziness. That had been much different from the dreams. The memory felt alive inside his head, vivid and _real_, something he couldn't deny. He had been there, in that room. He had felt the breeze from the open balcony doors, had felt the warmth of Estellise's hug and the tickle of her hair against his lips. He'd felt the pain in his chest at her words, and it returned as he tried to pull himself together and remember who he really was.

Estelle was staring at him, one hand over her mouth.

"Vesperia…." she whispered.

"Es…tellise?"

She started forward to hug him, but Repede began barking furiously as the undergrowth shook and rustled violently with the approach of the monster momentarily forgotten.

Before he knew what he was doing, Vesperia had tossed the sheath of his sword aside and stood ready to face whatever was crashing towards them. He felt prepared for anything and charged with anticipation for the impending fight. Suddenly, the monsters seemed more like a game than a threat. He even recognized the rhinosus for what it was when it entered the clearing, and he knew he'd beaten them before, easily.

Estellise dashed past him, sword raised. "Stay back if you aren't ready! I can handle this!"

"What, and let me miss out on all the fun?"

He was half a step behind her as they met the beast's charge. Vesperia twisted to the side, bringing his sword around to slash the rhinosus as it thundered between him and Estellise. The blade caught at the monster's flesh, and Vesperia stumbled, surprised by how rusty he felt, how his body didn't move the way it had the last time he'd fought. He'd enraged the rhinosus more than injured it, and it knocked a small tree over in its scramble to turn and charge once more.

He met it head-on, excited by the challenge. There was power in the blastia he wore on his wrist, he could feel it. He called upon that power as he swept his sword out in front of him.

"Azure Edge!"

The enhanced attack knocked the rhinosus aside, but it also sent Vesperia reeling backwards. He hadn't been prepared for the strength of the magic that left his blade and it shocked him, left him stunned over the absurdity of the situation. What was he doing fighting monsters in the park when he had to be up early to open the store the next day?

Luckily, Estellise picked up the offensive seamlessly and kept him from falling victim to his distraction. Fighting with a dancer's grace in her movements, Vesperia barely recognized sweet, quiet Estelle in the petite warrior she'd become. She targeted the rhinosus' vital areas with startling accuracy as she tried to finish it off quickly. The compassion that shone through in the way she handled a monster that would sooner trample them than look at them was a welcome reminder that his friend was still there beneath that strange armor and deadly resolve.

"Don't push yourself," she called out to him. "I know it's strange, but everything will come back to you in time."

He adjusted his grip on his sword, ready to rejoin the fight, but Estellise was quicker. She finished the monster off with a shout, and it faded away, leaving no trace that it had ever come barreling into that quiet night in the middle of what had been a regular city. Vesperia listened to the rustle of leaves in the wind and the distant, nearly inaudible white noise of traffic. Everything felt like it was back to normal, and he pulled the blastia off his wrist.

Yuri sagged. Exhaustion crept along his limbs, clinging to him and weighing him down. He felt as if he'd run a circuit around the entire city rather than just the park, and he knew the grin he offered Estellise was tired.

"So, we fight monsters. Cool."

"Are you all right? Are you injured at all?" She looked him over anxiously.

Plucking at the torn sleeve of his black hoodie, he kept up his smile as he lied. "Not a scratch. I'll have to get a new coat, though."

"Thank goodness."

She sighed and faded a little somehow as she returned to being herself, to being Estelle. Her presence became less overpowering and more down to earth, more the presence of someone who belonged to the world they lived in.

Estelle looked so relieved, and he was glad he'd kept that worry from weighing her down. Yuri's right hand was smeared with trails of his own blood, and he hid it deep in the pocket of his hoodie. As they walked back to the apartment building, he was careful to keep his injured arm on the far side from her, even though his sleeve was probably baggy enough even with the slashes through it to hide the wound. She kept sneaking glances at him, but she didn't press him, probably realizing that he was still trying to figure out exactly what had just happened. It was one thing to have dreams, another to have someone describe those dreams back and call them past life memories. It was a completely different experience to have that past life filling up his head as he fought off monsters that had no business intruding into his reality. After the night's events, there was no longer any question that all of it was real.

Monsters roamed the city. Estelle and Repede had the power to fight them off, and apparently so did he. Well, anyone with a decent sized shotgun could probably fight them off, but he felt that calling attention to the absolutely crazy situation he'd found himself in wouldn't be a very good idea. Nothing he'd ever seen where people with special powers revealed their existence to the world at large had ever ended well.

"So," he ventured. "What now?"

"Well, I suppose since you've accepted a place in all this—"

"As if I could have left you to deal with that alone."

Repede growled.

"Would you believe I meant both of you?"

"Now that you've accepted a place in all this, I suppose I'll be counting on you when they come after me again."

She smiled up at him as if she hadn't just told him that monsters were hunting her.

"I think you'd better fill me in on what's been going on."

Her soft voice, usually so soothing, was grim as she talked. She told him about the monsters that had begun appearing a few weeks ago, and about how they had started coming after her almost on a nightly basis. Thankfully, she hadn't been fighting alone. Repede had been by her side from the start, and Yuri had a sneaking suspicion that the dog had probably handled a few battles himself. When he glanced down, Repede caught his gaze and Yuri could have sworn the dog nodded.

Yuri kept quiet and listened to everything she had to say. It seemed she'd been keeping quite a bit to herself, even after hearing about his dreams. While he could appreciate that she hadn't wanted to put him in danger, it bothered him that she hadn't turned to him for help. He knew how to fight. He was good at it. Maybe it took Vesperia's strength to defeat monsters, but he would deal with the uncomfortable sensation of being someone else if it meant Estelle wouldn't have to face those monsters alone.

Eventually, she trailed off. Eyes downcast, she walked along in silence until they reached the entrance to their building.

"I'm sorry, Yuri. It's just…I haven't had anyone except Repede to talk to about all of this."

"Hey, look on the bright side." He reached over to ruffle her hair. "At least that means no one's tried to lock you up in the loony bin."

"Yuri!"

Laughing, she took a playful swipe at him. He dodged easily and egged her on, racing her to the elevator while trying not to make it obvious how badly his arm was beginning to ache. Yeah, it all seemed crazy, but he had a host of strange dreams, a few scattered memories, and a throbbing flesh wound to prove that none of it was as nuts as it sounded. Maybe between the two of them they could figure out how to deal with it all and get their normal lives back.

It wasn't until much later that night that memories of Estellise using healing spells trickled through Yuri's mind as he lay awake, trying desperately to think of nothing so that he could get a little sleep. Wrapped tightly in bandages, his arm still hurt like hell. If he'd spoken up earlier, maybe she would have been a little worried about him, but she could have fixed him right up.

"No helping it now."

He stared up at the ceiling. That cuff she'd given him earlier, the blastia, it was sitting on the edge of his desk. He could almost feel it in the room with him, as heavy with memory and magic as the metal it was forged from. He would have to start carrying that thing with him everywhere, just in case. He remembered the otherworldliness of the creatures and the way his sword had so easily cut them down, and he knew that he would be near useless without Vesperia's strength.

There was too much to think about. It was difficult to pick one thing and focus on it. He needed time to work through it all, and then he wanted a chance to talk to Estelle. It was a pity he couldn't talk to Flynn about it.

At the thought of his best friend, Yuri's chest tightened. If it had all really happened, what did that mean for Flynn and Estelle? Did they care about each other the same way Yuri cared for Flynn? He had been prepared to risk their friendship by confessing, but seeing his dreams intruding on the waking world had complicated things beyond reason. Could he really speak up when he believed it would interfere with their happiness? And what about Yuri, then? Were his feelings for Flynn nothing more than leftovers from another life? How much of him was Vesperia and how much was really himself? What if one day, all those memories filled him up until he wasn't Yuri anymore and only Vesperia was left? What if no one even noticed?

When he finally fell asleep that night, Yuri tossed and turned, dreaming of being consumed by a monster of boundless appetite that wore his face.


	5. Penumbra

A/N: The gang's all here! (Except Karol. XD) (Oh…I made myself sad. ;_;)

Disclaimer: The characters in this story are from _Tales of Vesperia_ and do not belong to me.

* * *

The Tuesday after their late afternoon battle with the monsters was the day everyone had agreed to get together and talk strategy. Yuri was supposed to meet up with them at the park that afternoon after his shift at the convenience store ended. He still had a few minutes left on the clock, but a glance out the window had him frozen where he stood. Across the street in a little café, he could see Estelle and Flynn sitting across from each other at a small table, laughing and talking. To all appearances, they were on a date.

Hachette called him back up to the registers, breaking him out of his initial shock. As Yuri ran mechanically through the checkout routine, he couldn't help thinking about what he'd seen.

It wasn't as if he knew for sure it was a date. Estelle and Flynn were friends. Yuri had introduced them years ago—again or for the first time, he still wasn't entirely sure how closely tied they all were to their old lives. The two of them had hung out plenty of times, although it was far more common for Yuri to be with them. Well, it wasn't as if he could just skip out on work whenever Flynn and Estelle got together to talk. And it wasn't like he had any right to interfere if it really was a date, which it might be. If Yuri had carried his feelings through from a past life, they certainly could have, too. If that was true though, it really sucked, for a number of reasons.

He stared out the window, watching them smile at each other across the table. Maybe they were just made to be together. Estelle never made Flynn nearly as angry as Yuri did sometimes. Any way he looked at it, she was a better match for him.

When Yuri's shift ended, he clocked out and took the back exit from the store. There was a roundabout way to the park, which wouldn't take him within sight of the café. He didn't want to interrupt Estelle's moment of happiness, not when she'd been fighting for so long. She could join the group after her date, or Yuri could fill her in later that evening. She was practically his little sister. He would look out for her.

Arriving at the park, Yuri found Judy relaxing on a bench as Rita paced back and forth along the path in front of her. Schwann was leaning against a nearby tree, arms crossed over his chest, but he stood to attention when Yuri walked up to the group. Out of all of them, he was the most different when transformed into his past life persona, though Yuri occasionally caught glimpses of something more serious beneath the colorful personality Raven wore like a costume.

Rita stopped pacing to scowl at Yuri. "Where's Estelle?"

"On her way. I'll fill her in on anything she misses, so let's get started."

"What gives you the right to say that? Estelle is the one being chased by monsters! What good does it do us to be here without her? And what if those things come through again while it's still light out?"

"She'll be fine. She's with one of us."

"Hm? And who would that be, exactly?"

Judy smiled up at him like she knew the answer already, and Yuri hesitated. The others knew about Fionn from their own memories and what Estelle had told them. They didn't know about Flynn. Would revealing his name somehow pull him closer to his past?

"Fionn," Yuri said, finally. It wasn't exactly a lie.

"He isn't one of us. Not yet." Schwann advanced on him, coming out from beneath the shade of the tree. The guy did serious the way Estelle did cheerful, and Yuri bristled a little at his tone.

"The hell he isn't. He fought with the rest of them. He was—"

"He fought with _us_, Vesperia. You forget that too often. We are not these facades we wear."

"You'd know all about facades, wouldn't you, old man?"

"Would you idiots cut it out?" Rita shoved each of them back. "We're here for a reason, if you haven't forgotten."

"Some among us seem to have trouble remembering."

Whether that had been a shot at him or a complaint about Flynn, Yuri wasn't going to put up with it. Schwann may be all right throwing his life away for the past, but he had no right to go deciding that for the rest of them. Yuri had him by his stuffy, buttoned up collar in a heartbeat, but Judy was just as quick. With a flick of her wrist and a faint, metallic clink, she extended a telescoping staff between them. Yuri went still as Schwann looked down on him impassively.

"Now, boys. It's rude to ignore a lady like that. Can we play nice for a little while?"

Reluctantly, Yuri released his hold. Raven was easier to deal with, for all that he played the fool so readily. As he stepped back, Judy smiled at the both of them and collapsed her staff, slipping it back into her bag.

"What the hell are you doing carrying something like that around?"

"A girl has to be able to protect herself."

As if she needed a weapon for that. Yuri had seen Judy fight—not Judith, but _Judy_, a supposedly normal human who was as battle happy as Vesperia and more close-lipped about her current life than Schwann. None of the group even knew her real name. When she'd first joined them and they had asked, she'd simply smiled and said that Judith would do fine. It was Yuri who had started to refer to her as Judy, a distinction between her and her other life that had seemed to surprise her. He liked Judy well enough. She'd probably be a blast to hang with, but there was no denying that she had some issues going on under the surface.

She wasn't the only one, either. Schwann's deal had already bubbled up. He was too tightly wound and convinced that their present lives should be ruled by the past. Rita had her problems, as well. Yuri still wasn't sure if Rita was her real name or not, and she hadn't taken kindly to the idea of a nickname. She was a little less prickly around Estelle, but, although she fought well enough with them against the monsters, she hadn't made any effort to become friends with them.

Aside from Yuri and Estelle, actually, none of them were really friends. They'd been thrown together by the circumstance of a shared past, but the bonds of loyalty between them weren't all that strongly forged. There were cracks in their group, and Yuri was starting to wonder if they could really prevent chaos from spreading through their world if they couldn't find a way to work together. It was easier in their other personas, but the opinions and attitudes of their current lives always lay just beneath the surface, ready to break though and disrupt what teamwork they could manage.

Well, that wasn't a problem that could be solved easily, and they had gathered together for answers, not a sharing circle. Yuri backed away from Schwann, willing to leave his ass unkicked if he kept his mouth shut and let them all get on with more important matters.

"So, where do we start?"

"The easiest way to stop the monsters would be to figure out how they're getting here." Rita pulled a notebook out of her bag and began flipping through it.

"Estelle says they come through the cracks between moonlight and shadow."

The look Rita shot him for that was absolutely withering and would have made a lesser man retreat to safety. Yuri laced his fingers behind his head and waited for her to tell him what he'd said wrong.

"Has it never occurred to you that maybe these things are too dumb to be finding pathways through space and time on their own? That maybe, just _maybe_, someone is opening doorways and deliberately pulling them through?"

"Yeah, but if that's the case, we should be looking for a who, not a how."

"You are the weirdest kind of idiot." She shook her head. "The how will lead us to who. Right now, we don't have a clue about who could be coming after Estelle because we don't even know why. It could be someone with a grudge against the Empire or someone who wants to unseal the Adephagos to destroy this world. Hell, they might not even be after Estelle! If someone uncovered enough of the legend and learned the proper spells, they could just be pulling those monsters through as a joke."

Schwann stepped forward, frowning. "I was under the impression that all information pertaining to the Lunar Empire had been lost centuries ago."

"Information can't be destroyed so easily. You can find out an awful lot, if you know where to look."

"So, does that computer of yours know where someone might find spells that would call monsters?" Judy leaned over Rita's shoulder to peer at her notes.

"H-hold on! I was just getting to that!"

"Why didn't you start with it?" Yuri asked innocently.

"You shut up! It's not like you contribute anything but brawn!"

He rolled his eyes, but didn't argue. Largely because he couldn't. She had a point.

"I've been tracking the monsters' appearances. They leave energy signatures for a few hours in the area where they came through, and I've been able to study those, as well."

"You didn't do that alone, did you?" Yuri did not want to have to be the person to tell Estelle that Rita had risked running into their unknown DM all by herself.

"Of course she didn't." Judy smiled at him over Rita's shoulder, and Yuri relaxed a little. Always ready for a fight, Judy was also sharply observant of her comrades and never too far away when they needed backup.

"You should have informed the rest of us about your investigations. I would have accompanied you."

"I didn't need that old man blabbering while I was trying to work."

"Raven is not a separate existence," Schwann insisted.

"The two of you are about as separate as it gets. Shut up about it and let Rita finish."

"Like I need _you_ stepping in. All of you, be quiet! Like I said, I've been studying when and where they're coming through and the leftover energy of the spell. This is high-level magic, nothing any of you should be capable of. Estelle's got the power for it, and I might be able to manage with a little more study, but whoever is calling these things through was definitely a citizen of the Empire, and I'm willing to bet it was someone we should know. Power like that doesn't hide in the background."

"That doesn't exactly pinpoint the person we ought to be searching for, does it?" Schwann griped. "Do you expect us to be able to remember every major player from the Empire and then be able to determine who they have reincarnated as—assuming they have reincarnated at all?"

"Don't get your feathers in a ruffle." For a second, Yuri thought Schwann was actually going to take a swing at him, and he grinned his widest. "There shouldn't be that many people we ought to be looking for."

"There was that ugly business with the guilds back then." Judy aimed her smile at both of them in turn. "I believe the two of you encountered most of the puppet masters behind it. Any ideas?"

"Most people from the guilds relied on blastia more than magic, right? So, we can pretty much rule them out."

Schwann sneered. "Still a sympathizer."

"The guilds are capable of a show of force _and_ independent thought. That certainly beats being nothing but a toy soldier."

Yuri shivered as the words left him. That hadn't been him speaking. He didn't have that sort of attachment to the guilds, or that much bitterness toward the Empire's military. Vesperia, on the other hand, seemed to have a few unresolved issues.

Apparently, Schwann had noticed the slip, too. He studied Yuri for a moment, then the faintest smirk turned up a corner of his mouth. He let the argument go, apparently satisfied with Yuri's discomfort or Vesperia's ability to take control. Maybe he wasn't so far off about the lives they had now being nothing more than facades. It wasn't a thought Yuri really wanted to consider.

"Councilman Ragou was the main instigator of the conflict from our side. I do not believe he would be capable of a work such as this on his own, despite the fact that we never had the chance to question him about his deeds and coconspirators."

_Nothing to say to _that_, Vesperia?_ Yuri thought. He knew what had happened to Ragou, even if Schwann didn't. He had seen the man meet his end in the nightmares that were Vesperia's darker memories. He wondered if Estelle would still trust Vesperia so implicitly if she knew what he had done. He wondered if it would taint her opinion of him, too.

Repede came trotting out of the bushes that lined the main path through the park. He sat down by Yuri's side, grinning his wolfish grin as Yuri scratched behind his ears. Not a minute later, approaching footsteps caught Yuri's attention, and he looked up to see Estelle hurrying towards them. Repede had probably been keeping an eye on her, and Yuri smiled down at the dog, ruffling his fur in quiet appreciation. It didn't look like Estelle had brought Flynn with her, an observation that prompted an unexpected wave of relief. Until that moment, Yuri hadn't realized how much he'd been afraid that she had asked Flynn out to tell him about their past and its importance to the present. He tried to quash the feeling, hating how selfish it was of him to want Flynn to remain in the dark and uninfluenced by Fionn.

As if aware of the self-centered nature of Yuri's thoughts, Estelle marched right up to him, crossed her arms over her chest and frowned at him.

"Where did you disappear to after work? I was waiting for you in the café."

"Didn't see you. Sorry." Before anyone could ask awkward questions about how he knew Estelle was with Fionn if he hadn't seen her, Yuri ushered her closer to the group. "You didn't miss much. Rita says the monsters are probably being pulled through by someone who can handle really high-level magic, but we haven't been able to narrow down the suspect list much. Any ideas?"

They tossed around possibilities for a while, each of them trying to come up with as many people as possible, no matter how far-fetched, that could have been capable of performing the spells Rita described. Given that her power as the Child of the Full Moon connected Estelle more strongly to her past life than the rest of them, she was able to recall more individuals and helpful details than anyone. Unfortunately, no one seemed to be able to point the finger at a probable suspect.

By the time the discussion was winding down, they were suggesting anyone at all, up to and including the Commandant. Estelle dismissed him without a thought, but Yuri heard a faint growl from Repede. Looking down, he saw that the dog's ears were laid back. He knew from some of the memories that Vesperia hadn't ever really liked the Commandant, but then, he'd been one of the nobility that had argued against the empress taking Vesperia in when he'd been found. Aside from that, his conduct had been spotless. He had devoted his life to serving the Empire. It was possible that Repede didn't like him because Vesperia hadn't liked him, but Yuri wasn't sure. Repede was smarter than most people realized, and Yuri decided he'd pass on the dog's warning to Estelle when the two of them had a chance to talk without the others arguing. If he convinced her that it was a lead worth looking into, the rest of the group would listen.

After a few more half-hearted suggestions, they lapsed into silence. In the end, the meeting hadn't done much good. They knew how the monsters were being brought through, but they still didn't know who was doing it or why. Rita was pacing again, Schwann had been chain smoking practically since Estelle had arrived, and even Judy's perpetual cool smile had faded. Yuri looked at each of them in turn, wondering if there was anything he could do to lighten the mood. It was Estelle that came to the rescue, however.

"It's been a long day. Why don't we all go out and get something to eat?"

The sun had set while they'd talked, and most of the illumination came from streetlamps. It was later than Yuri had realized, and he pulled out his phone to text Karol and let him know he'd be home soon.

"Sorry, Estelle. I gotta get back to my brother."

Schwann dropped his cigarette and ground it out on the pavement beneath his shoe. "I don't believe we'll accomplish anything further this evening through discussion. Contact me if monsters appear." He actually bowed to Estelle before leaving, and Yuri rolled his eyes.

"Unfortunately, I have a prior engagement. Perhaps next time."

"All right, Judith. Be safe on your way home."

Judy smiled and waved as she walked off.

"What about you, Rita? Would you like to get dinner together?"

"Me? I, uh…."

Watching Rita as she stammered and blushed bright red, Yuri realized suddenly that he might not be the only one stuck with a hopeless crush. The difference was, Rita didn't know about Estellise and Fionn. Their engagement had never been announced. Once Flynn regained his memories, Rita was going to be in for an unpleasant surprise.

"Please? It will give us a chance to talk about something normal, for once."

Estelle reached out and took one of Rita's hands in hers, and Yuri almost winced. She had that in common with Flynn, too, that habit of making some small gesture, something commonplace and friendly that had the unintended and slightly cruel side effect of bestowing hope for the impossible. Yuri couldn't count the number of times Flynn had done something or said something that made his heart speed up, even though he knew there was no deeper meaning to it. He kept his mouth shut as Rita muttered acceptance, her free hand clutching the strap of her bag where it crossed over her heart.

Beaming, Estelle released her hand. "Give me one minute, and then we'll go." When Rita nodded mutely, she pulled Yuri aside and lowered her voice. "I saw you looking at Flynn and me while we were in the café. Why did you sneak out?"

Apparently, he hadn't avoided those awkward questions after all.

"I didn't want to interrupt." It didn't look like Estelle was going to let it go, so he gestured to Rita where she stood fidgeting and glancing down the path as if gauging her chance of making an escape. "You'd better get going before she changes her mind."

"We'll talk later," Estelle said to him. It was as close to a command as he'd ever heard from her outside of her transformations into Estellise.

She bid Repede good night and returned to Rita's side. Yuri watched the two of them until they were out of sight, then sighed. He didn't really want to talk to Estelle about Flynn—or Fionn, for that matter. Vesperia hadn't gotten over it because he hadn't had the time. Apparently, three months wasn't enough time for Yuri to be over it, either. As he began the walk home, he was actually hoping the monsters would attack that night. He wanted a fight. Keeping pace beside him, Repede whined a little.

"I know, I know. It won't help anything. There's not much else I can do, though."

Repede barked, and Yuri laughed.

"Glad one of us believes it'll all work out."

He could practically sense Repede's exasperation but, when it came to the uncertainties of his relationships with Flynn and Estelle, he couldn't bring himself to trust his partner's opinions the way he did about matters concerning enemies and allies. If things were going to turn out for the best, they'd have to do so without Yuri's interference.

"So, you'll talk to Repede but not to me?"

Flynn stood in the shadow of a tree, arms crossed, face darkened with anger. How long had he been there? Glancing back involuntarily, Yuri figured that he probably hadn't been close enough to hear anything if he'd followed Estelle and tried to eavesdrop. When he tried to catch Repede's eye, wondering why the dog hadn't alerted him to Flynn's presence, Repede walked a short distance away, yawned, and lay down in the grass just off the sidewalk. Yuri was on his own, and it was not the sort of fight he'd been looking for.

"Got nothing to talk to you about." He tried to walk past, but Flynn's hand shot out, grabbing him by the wrist and pulling him up short.

"Estelle says you do."

"Estelle is wrong."

He wrenched his arm free violently, so desperate to get away from Flynn that he felt a twinge of pain in his wrist and had to resist rubbing it. He wouldn't bring Flynn into this. If Estelle wanted to explain, that was her choice, but Yuri would be damned if he was going to extinguish his last bit of hope himself. If they could just figure out how the monsters were slipping through from the past and put a stop to it, if they could get things back to normal without Flynn remembering anything, maybe then…maybe then Yuri could confess and there would be a chance that Flynn wouldn't reject him.

He felt Vesperia's presence heavy in his mind, an infectious melancholy that nevertheless passed no judgment on the excuses he was using to avoid saying anything to Flynn. Yuri's palms itched and he clenched his fists, digging his nails into his own flesh. It hurt having that ancient heartache echoing his own. It made him want to lash out, to beat the crap out of something so that maybe some of that pain would get spread around and lessen his own burden. He needed to get away from Flynn, needed to get home and get Karol some dinner so that he could slip back into the city to search for monsters. He started to turn away and Flynn grabbed him by the shirt.

"Who were those people? Why did that man bow to Estelle? All of you seem to be deferring to her. Why? What is going on? What have you gotten the two of you mixed up in?"

Yuri smirked, cold anger pushing aside the gloom that shrouded his mind. Flynn was so concerned about Estelle, so quick to notice things when they concerned her, but he still hadn't put the pieces together to realize that she was at the center of everything, that it was her, not Yuri, who had pulled everyone in, introduced them to each other and tried to unite them. He shoved hard enough to break the hold Flynn had on his shirt.

"Ask her."

"I already did. She said I should ask you." He shoved Yuri back, harder.

"Just a little LARP circle. Too bad we're not looking for new members. Your little lawful good paladin ass can just head on home."

Flynn expected to be pushed, and caught Yuri once more by the wrist, spinning him around to pin his arm behind his back.

"Quit bullshitting me. People don't come home from a game with the sorts of injuries I've seen you with. They don't hide stupid things like that from their best friends, either. I'm not an idiot, Yuri. Whatever it is you're doing, it isn't good."

As if he knew. As if he had any idea what Yuri had been doing. Every wound Yuri came home sporting was an injury that might otherwise have been inflicted on an innocent citizen. Every gash was a sign that he'd faced something powerful and come out the victor. Every bruise was an indication that he'd been giving his all to protect people. What right did Flynn have to judge him when he didn't even know what was going on? Why couldn't he just trust that Yuri had a good reason for not telling him?

Furious, Yuri threw his head back, bashing Flynn in the nose and causing him to let go and stagger back. He had enough time to turn and get a good look before Flynn pulled it together and launched himself forward. They tumbled off the path, rolling over the grass and throwing wild punches, their training in martial arts classes forgotten in the face of so much pent up frustration. Yuri struck out blindly, wanting to vent his anger on Flynn, wanting to get Flynn off of him, wanting to beat some sense into him and make him see that he had to _let it go_.

The fight was brief for all its ferocity. Flynn managed to get Yuri pinned down, and at that point, it was over. Yuri struggled, glaring daggers, but his best friend's grip wouldn't be broken and eventually he stopped fighting and turned his head to the side. He didn't even want to look at Flynn anymore. It hurt and it pissed him off and, even though he'd thought he'd gotten so much stronger while battling monsters, it still hadn't taken Flynn any time at all to win. It was a harsh reminder that the strength Yuri summoned at night wasn't really his own.

"Are you finished?"

He didn't answer. He wasn't going to fight back again, but that didn't mean he was going to give in and spill his guts. After a few long seconds, Flynn must have realized as much. He sighed and got to his feet, and Yuri could see by the redness of his cheek that at least one of his punches had landed. Infuriatingly, Flynn actually leaned down to offer him a hand up.

"Are you all right?"

Yuri only barely repressed the urge to throw one more punch. Instead, he got up and dusted himself off, wincing at a sharp throb in his wrist. He would have to have Estellise help him out with that later. Normally, he didn't like having to rely on her magic, but swinging a sword around was only going to worsen whatever he'd done to the joint.

He pushed past Flynn, tired and wanting nothing more than to go home and shut out everything that had been happening lately. Repede joined him, and Yuri could hear Flynn keeping pace a few steps behind. He tried to ignore him but, by the time they reached the park exit, he couldn't stand to keep quiet any longer.

"Why don't you go follow Estelle around a little more since you're so worried about her?"

"I'm worried about both of you. Besides…when we left the café, she told me to follow her."

"Sure. That's why you were hiding behind a tree the whole time." Unlikely, but Repede hadn't called Yuri's attention to Flynn. He glanced down at the dog who had nothing to say on the matter.

"I was hiding from _you_. Again, it was Estelle's idea."

"Why would she tell you to do that?"

He felt cold. Estelle must be tired of waiting to see if Flynn would remember on his own. She had to miss him. She had to want him to remember her. Maybe she had been hoping he would overhear something that would bring it all back. Too bad he hadn't been able to get close enough to hear and still keep out of sight.

"I don't know. Ow." Yuri heard a hiss of pain. "You weren't pulling your punches back there."

No, but Yuri could tell that Flynn had been. He was starting to feel a little sore in places where hits had landed, but it wasn't nearly as bad as it should have been. Flynn hadn't been serious about the fight, and he'd still won. It was like nothing at all had changed between them. What was the point of continuing to hope that it would?

"Are you heading home?"

"I've got to make dinner for Karol."

He felt the hesitation from Flynn, could tell he was wondering whether Yuri would invite him to join them or if he could ask to join in even after the fight. Was he that sick of microwave meals that he would be willing to put up with Yuri even longer that evening just for some decent food? This had to be awkward for him too, even if he had come out on top.

Flynn had the good sense not to try and find a place at the Lowell table. "How has he been doing in class?"

"Fine. He's got another test coming up soon. He'll probably want you to tutor him again."

"Sure. Just let me know when."

Yuri nodded. He got his wish for quiet and could almost ignore how strange things were between them. He tried to focus on the scuff of their footsteps over the sidewalk, the chatter of the thinning streams of other pedestrians, the rush of cars, and buzz of the streetlights. Distantly, he could hear horns and the wail of a siren. He strained his ears, wondering if there were roars echoing through the towering maze of buildings or if it was only the white noise of the city. Repede didn't seem to take any notice of it, however, and when he made it all the way back to the apartment complex without a text from one of the others alerting him to a monster attack, he figured that the sirens hadn't been an indication of any danger he needed to face.

A tap on his shoulder startled him enough that he spun around, grasping for a sword he didn't have. It hadn't been a monster that had snuck up on him though, but Flynn, who looked surprised.

"What?"

"Why are you so tense? You've been jumpy for weeks."

"You just startled me, is all."

He sped his steps toward the elevator bay. One uncomfortable ride up, and then he would be home free. There was an elevator waiting, and he and Repede stepped in. Turning around, Yuri saw Flynn watching him from the lobby.

"You coming?"

"I'll get the next one."

"Whatever."

It was a relief when the doors closed between them. Even to his own ears, it had sounded like he was pouting, but he hated it when Flynn looked at him like that. What was he supposed to do, though? He couldn't bring himself to tell Flynn, even though his hopes were sinking day by day. He knew he was using Fionn and Estellise's relationship as an excuse to hide, that he was really nothing but a coward no matter what he told himself or how many monsters he faced. When it came to the uncertainty of how Flynn would take learning of the past and of Yuri's feelings, his courage left him. If Estelle wanted Flynn to remember—and it was looking more and more like she did—she was going to have to tell him herself.


	6. Librations

A/N: I enjoyed writing the little bit of Raven that made it into this chapter.

Disclaimer: The characters in this story are from _Tales of Vesperia_ and do not belong to me.

* * *

Almost a week later, Yuri had been granted a rare Sunday off of work, so he and Karol had made plans to go check out a carnival that had come to town. He'd mentioned as much to Estelle and, knowing that she needed a chance to have some fun, he invited her along. As it turned out, her cousin Oliver was visiting for the week and Estelle wanted to bring him as well. Yuri had never much liked the kid. He looked too much like Flynn with his blond hair and blue eyes, but the personality was a complete mismatch. Oliver was a little creep, and Yuri only reluctantly agreed to add him to the group. With the number of people already grown past what he'd originally intended, Yuri suggested to Karol that he invite Nan. He left him chatting eagerly on the phone and went to go see if Flynn wanted to join in.

When he arrived at Flynn's door, he paused a moment before knocking, wondering if he should have just stayed home and texted. Things had gotten needlessly complicated ever since he'd started regaining Vesperia's memories, and Yuri absolutely hated that the thoughts and feelings of someone long dead could make him hesitate to spend time with his best friend.

Over the past few weeks, he'd had many more of Vesperia's memories thrust into his head, and he'd come to see differences between them that helped him get past that initial dejection at the idea that he owed everything he was to a man who had lived lifetimes ago. Despite that, the uncertainty about what could or should be between Flynn and Estelle kept him quiet about his own feelings. If Vesperia had been right about anything, he'd been right to think that it wasn't his place to interfere in the happiness of his best friends.

He tried to put all that out of his mind as he knocked on the door. If the two of them couldn't stay friends no matter who Flynn chose to be with, then the friendship that had been so important to Yuri over the years wouldn't have much meaning. Besides, there wasn't any point in worrying about something that hadn't happened yet.

Flynn actually seemed to brighten up a bit when he opened the door, and Yuri felt a little better for it. After all the questions Flynn had that he couldn't answer and all the things he'd done lately that he couldn't explain, Yuri had sort of expected that he wouldn't be all that pleased to see him. The smile he offered was more reassuring than it should have been, and set off that annoying, thrilling little fluttering feeling in his stomach. He stepped inside past Flynn who shut the door behind him.

"What brings you up?"

"I came to see if you wanted to go to the carnival tomorrow."

"With you?"

He obviously hadn't been expecting that, to ask something that dumb. Yuri supposed it _had_ been a while since he'd wanted to hang out aside from the nights they had dinner together. Even so, he didn't need to look so surprised. They were still friends, after all.

"Yeah, with me." He started ticking off people on his fingers as he listed the group that was going. "With me, Karol, Nan, Estelle, and Oliver—Estelle's cousin. Did you ever meet him?"

"Once, yes."

Yuri laughed at the look on Flynn's face. "He gave you the creeps, too?"

"Nothing like that. If you don't like him, why are you going to the carnival with him?"

"It was supposed to be just me and Karol, but things got a little out of hand. Besides, Estelle really wanted him to be able to come along."

"Yuri…you really aren't going out with Estelle?"

Where had that come from? Hadn't he already said that there wasn't anything going on between himself and Estelle? Did Flynn just not believe him, or was there something more to it? Yuri fixed a smile on his face.

"Why so concerned about it? You don't like the idea of Estelle hooking up with me?"

"I—no, that's not…."

He watched Flynn fidgeting while considering his answer. He really didn't want Estelle going out with Yuri, after all. Not many explanations for that.

"So, you wanna go to the carnival, or not?"

He accepted the change of subject too easily. "I can't. I've got a paper due on Monday, and I haven't finished it."

"What, Mister Teacher's Pet is leaving a report till the last minute?"

"I'd have finished it sooner, if I wasn't spending so much time worrying about what's been happening to you lately. If you would just tell me what's going on—"

Even knowing he shouldn't, Yuri couldn't resist baiting him. "Why not ask Estelle? She's obviously part of it."

"Perhaps, but you obviously started it. What are you dragging her into?"

"Sorry. Can't really tell you without dragging you in, too."

He started to leave, annoyed that Flynn hadn't even considered that maybe Estelle had been the start of everything. That wasn't really fair, either, though. Estelle may have regained her memories sooner than the rest of them, but she had never wanted to ruin the peaceful lives they led with battles that should have been left in the forgotten past. Had it been up to her, she'd probably have fought alone rather than pulling anyone else into the whole mess. She had her reasons for keeping Flynn ignorant, and Yuri had his.

Flynn took a step to the side, placing himself right in front of the doorknob, and preventing Yuri from taking off.

"I want to know what's going on."

"Everybody has something they want but can't have. Mind getting out of the way?"

"I want my friend back," Flynn said, stepping aside to let Yuri out. "Is that something else I can't have?"

Yuri didn't have an answer for him. There was too much that had changed and too much that remained uncertain. He wished things could be easy between them again, but deep down, he knew that they couldn't go back to the way it had been. He walked home, half wishing that Flynn would just hurry up and actually ask Estelle out so that Yuri could get over him and move on.

* * *

Late Sunday afternoon, the group arrived at the entrance to the carnival to find Rita and Judy waiting for them. Yuri wondered if Schwann was lurking somewhere out of sight, since everyone else was present.

They bought their tickets and filed in, and immediately Nan grabbed Karol by the wrist and took off into the crowds. Yuri watched them disappear, smiling wryly. So much for having a family day.

He looked over the people that remained. With Oliver among them, they couldn't really talk about their common past and current problem, but that was well enough, really. This was supposed to be a fun afternoon, after all.

"Yuri. It's good to see you again."

Oliver stepped forward and offered a hand. He let his fingers slide over Yuri's after they shook, and Yuri barely resisted the impulse to wipe his hand off on his jeans. When he'd visited before, Oliver had always seemed a little more interested in him than he ought to have been. He was smiling brightly enough that the family resemblance to Estelle was clear, but there were undertones in Oliver's expression that were absent from Estelle's smiles.

To get some space between the two of them for a few minutes, Yuri volunteered to go get a round of drinks for everyone while they decided what to do first. Unfortunately, Oliver wound up tagging along under the pretense of helping to carry back the cups. As soon as they were out of earshot of the group, he started trying to make conversation.

"It's a pity Flynn couldn't make it today. My cousin talks about him even more than she talks about you. I'm certain that she would have been thrilled had he been able to join us."

"She understands he's busy."

"I'm sure. She's always been the type to encourage others first, even at the cost of her own happiness. I hope he recognizes that in her."

"Flynn? Probably." Then, because he couldn't keep himself from asking: "Why?"

"She didn't tell you? She mentioned to me that there's someone very special to her, but that she couldn't speak up for some reason. I pressed, but she wouldn't explain."

"Must not be any of your business, then."

Of course she couldn't say anything. With everything that was going on, if Estelle confessed to Flynn, she'd only pull him closer to the reemergence of their past lives. She didn't want that for him, didn't want him to have to fight monsters and waste the time he needed to make a good life for himself. Flynn couldn't even make it for an afternoon at the carnival. How was he supposed to spend his nights protecting the city and still keep his grades up? Besides, what if he got hurt or worse? All of them ran that risk, and Yuri knew it weighed on Estelle that people were putting themselves in danger nightly for her sake. She hadn't asked it of any one of them, and she wouldn't ask it of the man she loved.

Thankfully, Oliver's talk about Flynn and Estelle stopped once they were back with the group. They all explored the fair together, trying their luck at the games of chance, checking out the attractions, and going on the few rides the carnival had set up. Every now and then, Yuri would catch a glimpse of Karol in the crowd. He'd given his brother a little bit of cash to help out with his date before they'd left the apartment, and he was glad to see that things seemed to be going well.

As the evening wore on, darkness began pressing in close, just outside the warm light of the carnival, and the crowds began to thin out as the temperature dropped further. Yuri and the group wandered toward the back of the fairgrounds. There, they found a house of horrors, and Judy suggested they take a look. When Rita refused to go, claiming that she hated stupid, fake attractions like that, Yuri heard the tremor in her voice and grinned. He snuck up behind her and ran a finger lightly up her spine. She shrieked, and he narrowly avoided a solid punch to the gut. Any ghost that messed with that girl was in for it.

Estelle hurried over to scold Yuri, and wound up volunteering to stay outside with Rita while the others went inside. As he trailed after them, Yuri couldn't help hoping that the blush across Rita's cheeks was a result of having been scared in front of the group, rather than a reaction to the arm Estelle had wrapped around her shoulders. He was pretty sure it was the latter, however, and Yuri felt for her. It really sucked having to compete with a centuries old romance.

Inside, the house of horrors was just as cheesy as Yuri had expected. Dim lights and fog machines obscured cheap Halloween props rigged to pop up along the walkway, and half-hidden speakers pumped out over-dramatized laughter and screams as well as a host of odd noises. The volume was dialed up so loud that when real screams began filtering in from outside, Yuri didn't realize it immediately. About to ask if Oliver or Judy could hear the shouts, his phone buzzed in his pocket, alerting him to a text message from Estelle.

|Monsters|

He tapped Judy's arm, hoping to get her attention and leave Oliver in the dark.

"Trouble," he murmured when she looked over her shoulder at him.

"Oh, good. It was worth the admission after all."

Shaking his head over her smile and knowing that his own expression wouldn't be much different soon, Yuri shoved his blastia onto his wrist as they hurried back toward the entrance.

"Dark Enforcer of the Lunar Empire, I am Brave Vesperia!"

"_You told me that Princess Estellise was your sister!"_

_Vesperia looked up from where he'd been attacking a dummy he'd put together from brooms, buckets, and bed sheets. He lowered his little wooden sword and cocked his head to the side as Fionn bore down on him, frowning._

"_She is my sister."_

"_No, she's not. You can't do magic. All citizens of the Empire can do magic."_

"_Well, I'm a citizen, and I can't do magic." He lost interest in the conversation and went back to slashing at his spindly opponent._

"_That means you weren't born here."_

"_I never said I was."_

"_Where are you from then?"_

"_I don't know." No one did. "Nowhere."_

"_You have to be from _somewhere_," Fionn insisted._

"_The anemone bed in the palace garden."_

"_What?"_

"_That's where I was found three years ago. That's where I'm from." He lunged, hitting the dummy hard enough to knock its bucket head off._

_What did it matter where he was from? Maybe some people still didn't like it, but Estellise had begged her mother to take in the little foundling that had appeared in their garden years ago, and the empress had agreed. From that day forward, Vesperia's home had been the palace, and Estellise and her family had been his own. Their kindness wasn't lost on him, even at only seven years old. He had vowed never to abandon his new family the way he had been abandoned. He would prove that loyalty could form stronger ties than blood._

Estellise and Rita were already fighting when Vesperia and Judith made it out. As Estellise bounced an attacking bunwigle off her shield, she glanced over at Vesperia and tried to bring him and Judith up to speed on what was happening.

"They're everywhere, flying ones, mostly. I texted Schwann, so Raven should be joining us soon."

"What? Didn't think we could handle this on our own?"

A fireball whizzed past Vesperia, crisping a scissorbeak that had been sneaking up behind him.

"They've been spotted, smartass," Rita snapped. "We need this dealt with _now_. The more of us there are, the better."

"Will we be fighting off camera crews, too?" Judith spun her spear, stunning two charging creatures before running a third through. She barely paused before darting forward, sights already set on her next target.

"From what I heard, people seemed to think some of the sideshow animals had gotten loose. As long as they're coming after me, then I think most of the people should be able to get out safely."

A sick feeling pooled in Vesperia's stomach as he cut down an axe beak.

"Where's Karol?"

"Oh my gosh! Ves—Yuri, I'm sorry, I didn't even think! I haven't seen him!"

With flying monsters whizzing past like oversized gnats, there wasn't time to try calling. A succession of Azure Edge attacks cleared a path through the worst of it, but Rita's voice pulled him up short before he could get very far.

"Where the hell do you think you're going?"

"I need to find my brother. Got a problem with that?"

"You don't _have_ a brother, _Vesperia_. You have a sister, and right now, she could use your help!"

He hesitated. Caught between knowing that Rita was right about the need to protect Estellise and the certainty that Karol was smart enough to know when he needed to get away from a bad situation, Vesperia wavered as monsters closed in and his comrades battled around him. The decision of which path to take was made for him as something huge reared up near the entrance, tall enough for the whole group to be able to see it, even from where they fought at the back of the park.

"What the _hell_ is that?"

"It's a jons!" Estellise shouted back. "We'll have to be careful when fighting it. Those monsters can use their ink to blind enemies."

A shout rang out across the fairgrounds, and Vesperia froze in place, eyes locked on the struggling figure being raised up, wrapped in one of the jons' tentacles. Karol shouted once again and beat fruitlessly at the creature with his bag. Vesperia shook off his shock and was racing forward in a heartbeat.

"You can't go off on your own!"

"That thing has my brother!"

He ignored the rest of Rita's protests and fought his way through the lesser monsters that were drawn to Estellise's power. He wasted as little time as possible on the small fry, focused only on getting to Karol and getting him to safety. He almost ran right into Nan. She had raided one of the carnival games and was holding a sack full of baseballs, which she pulled out one by one to fling at the creature as fast and as hard as she could. It wasn't doing any damage. The jons wasn't even making an effort to get close enough to catch her.

"Get out of here," Vesperia ordered. "I'll get him."

"Who are you supposed to be?"

He ignored her and charged right up to the monster to jam the point of his sword into the ground.

"Destruction Field!"

Flames leapt up around him, shooting out in a widening circle and doing a hell of a lot better job grabbing the jons' attention. It screeched in pain, flailing its tentacles and loosing its grip on Karol, who went flying.

Tossing his sword aside, Vesperia raced to get to Karol. He tried to catch him, but only wound up cushioning his fall. The full weight of his twelve-year-old brother plus a packed messenger bag slammed into Vesperia, throwing him hard to the ground and knocking the wind out of him. Even knowing the situation they were in and hearing the jons coming after them, it still took Vesperia several long, precious seconds to collect himself and climb to his feet. Karol seemed shaken, but none the worse for wear.

"Wha-wha-wha—"

"I'll explain later. Stay back!"

"_Yuri_?"

"Karol, _get back_!"

Reaching for a sword he didn't have, Vesperia swore when he realized the jons had gotten between him and his weapon. Grimly, he prepared to take the thing on barehanded. There was absolutely no way he was going down without a fight. Luckily, it didn't come to that.

A volley of arrows rained down, embedding themselves in the jons' flesh in a series of sickening thuds. It squealed in pain and rage, searching for this new threat. Vesperia spotted Raven at the same time the monster did. The man was standing atop the carnival's main tent, posed dramatically against the dark sky and strings of glowing paper lanterns. A second later, Vesperia rolled his eyes as Raven ruined the image by losing his footing and stumbling a couple steps before falling down and sliding off the tent. What a clown. How Raven had reincarnated as Captain Schwann Buzzkill was a mystery.

"Finally found where you belong, old man?"

"What, you mean standing between you and danger?" He took off running, firing arrows back over his shoulder as the jons chased him. "Hurry up! I don't wanna hafta fight this thing by myself!"

The distraction Raven had provided was more than enough to keep the jons occupied long enough for Vesperia to get his sword. He took a few precious seconds to send Karol and Nan running toward the exit, and then there was nothing in his mind except for the fight.

Nothing as large as the jons had ever made its way through before, but Vesperia had never shrunk from an opponent and he wasn't about to start. He charged right in, dodging tentacles as he used his artes to score hits that the creature felt despite its thick skin. Although he was dealing damage, it wasn't enough. Without some more powerful attacks or a little backup, the fight was going to take more time than they had to spare.

"Hey, old man! I could use a little help, here!"

"Doin' the best I can, kiddo."

Every one of Raven's arrows found its mark in the monster, but they were as ineffective as Vesperia's strikes. Between the two of them, they were only slowly whittling away at a creature that was doing its best to catch them up in its tentacles. Simply keeping out of its reach was going to drain Vesperia's strength before the fight was concluded.

With the faint wail of sirens in the distance just reaching his ears, Vesperia threw caution to the wind and ran straight at the monster's body, keeping low in an attempt to avoid most of the lashing tentacles. He jammed his sword deep into its body, hoping to concentrate the force of his arte directly into it.

"Destruction Field!"

The attack worked incredibly well, crisping part of the creature and sending it retreating across the fairgrounds, a sure sign that the tide was turning. Vesperia slashed at it as he gave chase, hounding it with Azure Edge and Ghost Wolf strikes that improved his range and did more damage than the naked blade of his sword would have done. Raven's arrows streaked past him, vaguely unnerving when he remembered the tensions between Schwann and Yuri, but Vesperia's focus was on the jons and he put concerns about his comrades to the side, trusting that he would not end up with an arrow in his back.

As it turned out, an arrow wasn't the biggest of his concerns. That brief moment of uncertainty was enough for the jons to catch him off guard. One of its tentacles whipped around and caught Vesperia hard. There was a sharp crack, and he was thrown aside like a rag doll. He flew several feet before landing with bone crunching force, skidding helplessly across the dusty, littered ground until he hit a booth. A fierce pain radiated from his side, spreading through his back and right arm. When he opened his eyes, the world went dark around the edges and swayed sickeningly.

"Yuri! _Yuri_!"

Karol's voice came to him, desperate and scared. He had to get up. He had to help his brother.

"Yuri! Are you okay?" He felt Karol's hand clutching his shoulder. "D-don't move! I'll protect you!"

There was a tug on his sword and Vesperia instinctively tightened his grip until his hand ached. It was a miracle he'd held on to it.

"You have to let go, Yuri! Th-that thing is c-coming!"

He saw Karol, but couldn't focus on him. Behind him came the jons, a myriad of furious tentacles. Vesperia rolled onto his stomach, pulling his sword underneath his body and out of Karol's reach. He tried to tell him to run, but nothing came out except a coughing fit. Breathing had hurt. Coughing was agony.

With a shout, Karol threw himself over Vesperia, bracing for an attack that never came…not for them, at least.

"Eruption!"

The ground shook with the force of Rita's spell and the jons shrieked. Vesperia heard the thud of arrows impacting, and the combined shouts of Rita's casting and Judith's attacks. Soon enough, the only sound left was the approaching noise of sirens.

Hands pulled Vesperia up off the ground. He did his best to stand under his own power, but knew the assistance was needed. That last hit from the jons had been a bad one. He needed Estellise to heal him.

"We need to get out of here." Rita was shoving as much as supporting.

"W-wait! Yuri's hurt! Who are you people? What's going on?"

"Easy, kid. I got somethin' that'll help your brother out."

"You do?"

"Yeah. A little Love Shot."

The refreshing waves of a healing spell pushed back the pain and helped Vesperia focus. He pulled away from the hands holding him up, though he didn't try to pry his coat from Karol's grip. His brother was looking up at him, eyes wide and scared, and Vesperia tugged his scarf the rest of the way out of his face to smile down at him.

"Sorry to worry you, Boss."

Flinging his arms around Vesperia, Karol hugged him very briefly, very tightly, and very painfully. Raven's magic hadn't reversed all the damage, only enough to get him up and moving. He did his best to hide his wince as Karol glared up at him and began firing off questions as quick as Raven's arrows.

"What's going on? What was that thing? Where'd you learn to fight like that? Who are these guys? Why are you wearing those weird clothes?" He paused to take a breath, and Vesperia tried to talk to him.

"Chill out. I know it's a lot, but—"

"Is this what you've been doing every night? You've been fighting monsters? That's _so cool_! Can I help?"

Karol's questions reached the end of Rita's short temper. She smacked the back of his head, glowering.

"Would you shut up? We've got bigger problems right now than babysitting!"

All of a sudden, Vesperia noticed that one of their number was missing. "Where's Estellise?"

"That's the problem," Judith said. For once, her expression bore no trace of amusement. "Estellise has been taken."

* * *

An urgent rapping at his window pulled Flynn's attention away from his textbook, and he looked up to see Karol waving from the fire escape. Behind him was Yuri, instantly recognizable despite the strange clothes he wore—and was that a _sword_ in his hand? For just a moment, Flynn stared, taken aback by this new display of abnormal behavior, then, as Yuri knocked again, impatience in his expression, he snapped out of his surprise and got up to let them in.

Karol clambered through the window, lugging the huge messenger bag that he took with him everywhere. He was covered in dirt and his clothes were torn. Yuri didn't look to be in much better shape, and Flynn saw him wince when he leaned forward. He was reaching out to help pull him inside when Yuri spoke.

"I need you to look after Karol for me."

"You—? What the _hell_, Yuri? What on earth is going on? Why are you—?"

"I don't have time for this! I'm sorry, all right? I'll tell you everything later, I swear. Just look after Karol until I get back."

Flynn eyed him dubiously. "You'll really explain? No more secrets?"

"Yeah." He sounded so defeated, but there was no hesitation when he made the promise.

"All right. I'll wait a little longer."

"Thanks."

Yuri sighed and started to leave, but he paused, still leaning in through the window, still close enough that the anxiety flickering in his eyes was clear to see. He looked up suddenly to meet Flynn's stare.

"Flynn…just so you know…."

Before Flynn realized what was happening, Yuri reached out and pulled him close, and the next thing he knew, Yuri's lips were pressed hard against his. He could smell dirt and blood and something else, something strange that he felt he should recognize. Before he could place it, Yuri pulled back, a rueful smile on his face as he ducked out the window and backed to the edge of the fire escape.

"Yuri, wait!"

Flynn was leaning out after him, ready to climb through the window himself and demand some answers immediately. Instead, he had to watch, horrified, as Yuri spun and vaulted over the railing.

"Yuri!"

He was through the window in a second, practically falling over himself in his hurry. Expecting to see Yuri lying on the pavement eleven stories below, he was shocked to find no trace of his friend. He scanned the entirety of the alley beneath him, unable to believe that Yuri had disappeared.

"Flynn, it's okay!" Karol shouted from behind him. "He's a superhero or something! You should have seen him! There was this big monster, right? And Yuri was all: 'Destruction Field!' and it was all: 'woosh!' and there was all this fire and—"

"Wait. Wait, slow down."

He pressed a hand to his forehead, though it slipped quickly down to cover his mouth where the phantom press of lips still lingered. Karol was keyed up and entirely unconcerned about the stunt Yuri had just pulled. He understood at least part of what was going on, and Flynn climbed back inside, shaking a little from shock, though he had enough presence of mind to realize that anger would soon follow. Taking a seat on the edge of his bed, he gave Karol his full attention.

"Tell me exactly what happened."

* * *

Hours later, Flynn sat straight up in bed, woken by the feeling that something was wrong. He could hear Karol snoring from where he had gone to sleep on the couch, and the faint rush of late night traffic was a familiar sound from outside. The city's fluorescent lights seeped through the blinds over his bedroom window in a pale blue glow that faded into darkness only a few feet into the room. He tried to silence his breathing, listening for any sound that was out of place, scanning the familiar shadows for something that didn't belong. He could practically feel someone in the room with him, and the story Karol had told him about monsters and giant squids came fresh to his mind. He was steeling himself to pull back the sheets and get up, when he heard a voice from near the doorway.

"Hello, Flynn."

Though he had only met the speaker a couple of times, he recognized the voice immediately.

"Oliver. What are you doing here?"

He remembered thinking of Estelle's cousin as a friendly, personable young man, but he had also noticed Yuri's reaction to him. Yuri had never liked Oliver. He had never explained his dislike, but it had been obvious—to Flynn, at least—that something about Oliver made Yuri uncomfortable, and that was enough to make Flynn hesitant to trust him.

His unexpected appearance in Flynn's bedroom in the middle of the night vindicated that mistrust, and Flynn got to his feet, wary and a little unnerved.

"There's no need to sound so suspicious. I came to help. And please, call me Ioder. My business here is linked with that name rather than my current one." He moved across the room until he stood next to the window and the faint illumination it provided.

Ioder? Why did that sound familiar?

"Came to help with what?" Karol hadn't said anything about Oliver being part of Yuri's costumed superhero group.

"Yuri hasn't been very forthcoming with you, has he? It isn't really fair. You've got just as much right to know what's going on as he does, probably more considering your personal connection to my cousin."

"What does Estelle have to do with this?"

Aside from mentioning that Estelle was one of the people that fought monsters with Yuri, Karol hadn't had much to say about her. He hadn't even seen her fight, apparently, so he hadn't been able to describe that and Flynn had trouble imagining it.

"Estelle—or Estellise, rather—has everything to do with what has been happening. I came tonight to explain it all to you, to give you back what you've lost." He had begun stepping closer as he spoke, a thin smile on his face. "You should be fighting at her side," he said quietly, "not held back and kept ignorant."

He was getting too close. One step back had Flynn's legs flush with his bed, and he frowned, even knowing the expression did little good in the darkness.

"Yuri already promised to tell me. I'd rather hear the story from him."

"Oh? That's too bad. I was only making the offer to be polite, you see. It's already too late for you to decline."

Suddenly, in spite of the darkness, Flynn could see him clearly. He also realized that he couldn't move a muscle. Oliver reached up, smiling that pleasant little smile of his that had never fooled Yuri, and touched one finger to Flynn's forehead.

"I apologize for forcing the issue, Fionn, but everyone will be much happier once you remember your place by my cousin's side. Even Vesperia will finally be able to let you go."

Flynn crumpled to the floor, the room disappearing around him. The last thing he saw was Oliver walking away as the world blurred and ran as if being washed away. As he shut the door, Flynn was plunged into total darkness. There, he dreamed.


	7. The Lunar Empire, Part 1

A/N: Reesers, thank you again for putting up with all my bitching over this.

Disclaimer: The characters and settings in this story are from _Tales of Vesperia_ and do not belong to me.

* * *

Even for citizens living in the lower quarter, Zaphias, the capital city of the Lunar Empire, was a good place to grow up. The city had its problems, of course—strict divisions between the classes and a scarcity of resources among the poor being chief among them—but on the whole, it was a safe place to live, free from the monsters that roamed the wilds and far from the anti-imperialist rumblings of the guilds. The city itself was a labyrinth of wide, sloping streets; twisting, shadowy alleyways; bridges and archways trailing flowering vines; and numerous rushing fountains and canals. For Fionn, son of one of the imperial army's lieutenants, it was an incomparable playground, full of places to explore.

Although his rank as lieutenant afforded him the status and income necessary to move to a house in the public quarter, Fionn's father chose to live in the same lower quarter neighborhood where he had grown up. They were established there, recognized and welcome, and more than happy to put up with the small discomforts in exchange for living amid the comfortable hustle and bustle of familiar faces.

Fionn was seven years old when he met Vesperia. He'd been playing with friends that he'd known all his life, and hadn't actually noticed exactly when the strange boy had first joined them. Fionn _did_ notice when he left, however. It had been hard not to when two of the imperial guard had come barreling through the streets chasing after the boy. When they'd gone, Fionn and the other children had gathered together, wide-eyed and wondering who the boy had been and what he had done to be chased by imperial guards. Eventually, they went back to their games and Fionn forgot all about it until later that evening.

On his way home, he crossed paths with the strange boy, seeing him emerge from an alley looking rather annoyed.

"Hey, you!" The boy stopped and turned to look at him and Fionn hurried forward. "Why were the guards chasing you?"

The boy tilted his head to the side. His hair fell almost to his shoulders, like some of the girls around town. "I escaped," he said after a moment, grinning. He didn't look serious about it.

"You didn't, really. Dad says kids don't get locked up."

"I wasn't locked up, I just wasn't supposed to leave. I ought to be getting back, though." He looked up, as if he was trying to see past the tall houses to either side of the street. His stomach growled loudly.

"Do you want to come have dinner with me and Dad?" The boy looked at him oddly, and Fionn scuffed his foot over the cobblestones. "You're hungry, right? Come eat with us."

He'd had some small 'what if?' thought: What if the boy really was a criminal of some sort? He didn't look like it, but what if? Imperial guards just didn't go around chasing people without a really good reason. What if Fionn was the one who helped catch him by bringing him home? Surely his father would know if the boy really was a criminal, and if he wasn't…well, he didn't need to know Fionn had suspected him. _But_…if he did turn out to be a something like a young master thief or a spy for the guilds, then Fionn would be a hero. They might even make him a knight.

With visions of heroic deeds floating through his head, Fionn led the boy toward home. They didn't have far to go, and were only a few streets away when the boy spoke up.

"Your name's Fionn, right? Is your dad a knight?"

He jumped guiltily, thinking he'd been found out. He had nothing to feel guilty about if the boy was a criminal, of course, but if he wasn't….

"Yeah. How'd you know?"

"I've seen him before. He's blond, like you." Briefly, he tugged a lock of Fionn's hair. "Did he teach you how to use a sword?"

"Yeah." Back on solid ground, Fionn raised the wooden sword he'd been playing with earlier. "I'm going to join the Knights."

"Hmmm…." The boy turned around so that he was walking backwards, facing Fionn. "Will you teach me?"

"What?"

"Teach me how to fight."

"Why should I—" He very nearly asked: 'Why should I teach a criminal how to fight?' but had caught himself in time.

"Please?" His expression soured. "No one else will teach me."

_Ah-hah! Of course they wouldn't teach a criminal how to use a sword!_ Now he _really_ had to get the boy home. They were nearly there. "I guess I—"

He stopped dead in his tracks. Silhouetted in the open door to his house stood his father and another knight. Fionn looked at the boy next to him, expecting him to run the way he had that morning, but the boy was staring resolutely ahead. Just to make sure, Fionn reached out and grabbed his hand. They were only a few steps away when his father and the knight turned to see them.

"Fionn, you found him." He swelled with pride at the approval in his father's voice.

"I'm not going back yet!" The boy's grip on his hand tightened much more than Fionn had expected, and he glared at the knight as the man stepped forward.

"I am under orders to bring you—"

"Fionn invited me to dinner. I'll come back after that."

The adults exchanged looks and Fionn's father shrugged. "I'll escort him back to the palace. You don't have to tell anyone you ran across him."

Outranked, the knight saluted and left, though he didn't look happy about it. The boy stuck out his tongue at him and watched until he was gone. Fionn looked back and forth from him to his father, utterly confused by what had just happened. He yanked his hand free and took a step back.

"How come the knights are looking for you? For real, this time."

The boy shrugged. "I'm Princess Estellise's brother. My name's Vesperia."

* * *

After that night, Vesperia began coming down to the lower quarter to play with Fionn almost on a daily basis. They quickly became close friends, even though Vesperia was headstrong and prone to fighting. He was as strong as Fionn, though since no one had ever taught him how to fight, he wasn't as skilled. Fionn's father began teaching both boys how to use a sword, but Fionn always remained just that little bit better than Vesperia. He never lost a match to his strange friend.

They explored the town together. That first night, Vesperia had been lost and trying to find his way home when Fionn had run into him. After a week together, however, he knew every alleyway and shortcut through the lower quarter. It came in handy when knights were sent out to bring him back to the palace. Although no one would consent to teach him how to fight, Vesperia apparently had other regular lessons that he skipped out on as often as possible to go play in the city.

"It's all boring stuff," he told Fionn, once. "When they're not telling me how to act, they're talking about things that happened ages ago or how to figure sums. I don't need any of that stuff. I'm going to be a knight."

"Knights have to know how to do sums." He knew because his father had told him so. "They have to learn lots of things, like how to read and write—"

"And fight. No one at the palace cares about that, though. All they care about is rules and traditions and _established lineages_." He frowned and kicked a pebble across the cobblestones. "What's that even mean?"

Fionn thought for a minute, sorting through what his father had taught him and the lessons he'd learned with the other lower quarter children. "I think it has something to do with figures on charts or maps," he said, finally.

"Like where you came from?"

"Maybe."

Vesperia made a considering sort of noise and dropped the subject.

* * *

It wasn't but a few months after they had first met that Vesperia brought his sister with him to the lower quarter. Estellise was as curious about everything as her brother had been, and Vesperia escorted her through the streets with pride, a brave explorer showing off his discovery. She seemed particularly fascinated with the flowers that grew throughout the city.

"We have gardens at the palace, but all the flowers are white. I never knew they came in so many colors until Vesperia told me. This place is so _beautiful_!"

"It's really different down here," Vesperia said. "People aren't so stuffy."

"What's it like living in the palace?"

"There's lots of rules," Vesperia complained.

"We have lessons every day, even though Vesperia usually comes to see you, instead. It's very busy, but not the same as this place. It's…. I'm sorry. I'm not sure how to describe it. It's a quiet sort of busy."

"It's cold," Vesperia said softly. He smiled briefly at his sister when she slipped her hand into his.

"Fionn, will you show me your home? Vesperia told me you have a garden, as well."

"It was Mom's." He started leading them through the streets back toward home. "It's not very big. Dad always says we ought to take better care of it." They never did, though. It had been his mother's garden before she had passed away years ago. Now, it was just an overgrown tangle of vines and flowers next to their back door. There was no way it could compare to the palace gardens.

Estellise didn't seem to mind the mess. She exclaimed over the tiny, pale violet lilac blossoms and the delicate yellow roses and the bright fuchsia morning glories. As she explored the small garden, Fionn and Vesperia got their swords and sparred.

It wasn't long before Fionn's father called them all in for lunch. As they sat down around the table, Vesperia remained standing next to his chair.

"Estellise should learn how to fight with us," he announced, much to Fionn's surprise.

"But…she's a girl."

"So? She's going to be the empress one day. She's got to be strong if she's going to be in charge of the whole Empire."

Fionn's father had laughed at that, but he'd promised to find Estellise a sword to train with. After that day, he had three small pupils to teach, though the princess was allowed far less freedom to visit the lower quarter than her brother was. Even still, she quickly became the third member of their group and the bond between them grew with the swiftly passing days of childhood.

* * *

For two years, they played together on the streets of the lower quarter. Vesperia and Estellise came to know the citizens as well as Fionn did and were welcomed everywhere, so long as Vesperia wasn't bringing his mischief with him. They splashed in the fountains, made forts of the bridges, and quested through the alleyways. The boys scrapped in the yard while Estellise restored the small garden. They shared meals and learned to wield swords.

Estellise's tenth birthday was just around the corner when the Council put an end to her time in the lower quarter. Many of them had never liked the idea of the princess roaming unsupervised through the city, but the children had always been able to evade any chaperones sent after them, and the empress had never seen fit to deny her daughter the freedom to go out among the people she would one day rule. As Estellise grew, however, more and more of the nobility began to express the view that it was improper for her to be running around with a pair of boys when she ought to be focusing on her studies in preparation for the day she would ascend to the throne. They finally managed to convince the ailing empress, and she forbade her daughter from leaving the palace unescorted.

The decision left Vesperia frustrated, and for days he complained in great detail about the council members most responsible for it. He began splitting his time between Fionn and Estellise, and always brought his sister something from the city, be it a flower from the garden she had restored, a pastry from their favorite bakery, or simply what he had learned of fighting from Fionn's father. Even that became difficult, however, as the Council had taken issue with the idea of a princess who could fight. From the way Vesperia began throwing it around like a dirty word, Fionn could guess that the term 'unladylike' featured heavily in the Council's arguments.

Weeks passed like that, with Vesperia switching between simmering anger and his usual preoccupation with tearing around the city and sparring. Then, the day before Estellise's birthday, Fionn was awoken before dawn by the sound of tapping on his second story bedroom window. Turning up the lamp, he looked outside to see Vesperia perched in the tree that grew next to the house. He was grinning ear-to-ear and motioned for Fionn to keep quiet and join him outside.

In minutes, Fionn was dressed and downstairs. He shivered a little as he stepped out, and Vesperia met him with a sword—a real one, honed and ready to be used in an actual fight rather than a beginner's sparring match—and a sheath.

"This one's for you," he whispered, handing it over. Proudly, he patted the pommel of a second sword that hung at his side.

"Where did you get these?" Fionn whispered because Vesperia had, not quite sure why his friend had felt the need to wake him up and bring him a sword so early in the morning.

"Borrowed them from the palace. We're going to need them. Come on."

He grabbed Fionn's hand and led him out of the yard and into the city. They made for the gate, which should have been guarded around the clock, though the only knight on duty had fallen asleep at his post. He couldn't believe Vesperia actually intended to lead them beyond the safety of the city's walls until they were practically through the open archway. Fionn balked at the first tingle of magic against his skin, the sign that they were passing outside the barrier.

"Wait! Why are we leaving the city? What's going on?"

"We're gonna go get Estellise the prettiest flower in the world for her birthday. I looked through some of her books. There's loads of flowers that don't grow in the city. They're called wildflowers."

"Like the filifolia?" He wasn't sure what else a wild flower could be, and he didn't think Estellise would want something like that as a pet.

"No, like regular flowers, but prettier. There's supposed to be whole fields of them." He tugged once more on Fionn's hand. "Come on."

The land outside the city walls was still and quiet and almost unbelievably open. The sky was turning the soft gray of dawn as the sun prepared to rise. As Fionn stepped through the barrier, something sparked within him that had nothing to do with magic, and he found himself rushing forward with Vesperia, grinning uncontrollably from the realization that this would be a _real_ adventure.

They raced across the grass, laughing in harsh, hissing bursts of breath as they tried to keep quiet despite the excitement that had filled them up and taken hold. Vesperia ran straight for a towering tree on a small hill, and was climbing as soon as he reached it, Fionn only a heartbeat behind.

The two of them had climbed trees before, but the ones growing in the city were spindly saplings compared to this one. It was huge, taller than the houses of the public quarter that stood as a towering border between the districts of the city. They climbed higher than either of them had ever been before, until finally Vesperia shimmied out onto a branch and Fionn followed him, gaping. They could see for miles. It was amazing.

"It's still too dark," Vesperia muttered. "Once the sun comes up, we'll be able to see where the wildflowers are."

Fionn settled in next to him, glad for the warmth because the morning was still chilly. They watched the sun come up, turning the sky blue and revealing the silver sheen of dew on the grass, and all the while, Vesperia scanned the land that stretched out for forever, searching for the flowers he wanted to bring to his sister.

"There!" he exclaimed, finally.

"Where?"

"Over there, where it's kind of yellow! That's got to be them!"

He hustled Fionn back towards the trunk and down to the ground and then they were off again, chasing over little hills and grassy valleys as Vesperia led them toward their goal. As they ran, Vesperia let out a shout of pure excitement that echoed out before them into the vastness of the outside world. Fionn followed suit, all worries of being overheard forgotten in the face of the freedom they'd found. They whooped and laughed, running further and further from the city until they found themselves on the very edge of a sprawling carpet of flowers.

It was just as Vesperia had said, and Fionn stepped into the mass of them, marveling at the sight. Rather than the familiar cobbles of the city streets or even the soft grass they'd just run through, he found himself standing knee-deep in flowers, his feet hidden from sight as the blossoms clustered thickly around his legs. There were more flowers than he'd ever seen in his life. Most of them were yellow—the ones Vesperia had first spotted from their perch in the tree—but mixed in were nodding heads of pink, white, purple, and blue, all different shapes and sizes, all bobbing gently in the breeze, petals tickling his skin. It was incredible.

"I wish Estellise could see this," he said.

"One day she will. I'll make sure of it. Until then…" He crouched down and began digging in the dirt with his bare hands. "…we'll bring some of these back for her."

They dug up one of every kind of flower, roots and all. Vesperia talked excitedly about finding pots to plant them in and letting Estellise start her own garden in the palace. They were on their way back to the city, bits of earth still falling loose from the trailing roots, when Fionn heard the buzzing. He looked around, searching for the source, and spotted a bee hovering over the flowers, watching them. The monster was easily as big as they were, and bore spikes on its forearms half as long as the blade-like stinger on its abdomen. It had mandibles like some of the more wicked looking blades Fionn had seen hanging on the wall of the butcher shop.

Until that moment, he hadn't realized exactly how far they had gotten from the city and its protective barrier. He looked at Vesperia, who had gone a shade paler upon noticing the monster, and saw him glance down at his sword, either wondering how fast he could draw it or considering the advantages of getting in the first strike. For his part, Fionn hoped that they could get far enough away that the bee would decide they weren't worth attacking. His hopes were dashed as it swayed in the air and darted forward after them.

"_Run_!"

He grabbed Vesperia's arm and took off as fast as he could go. Their feet pounded over the earth of the fields, sped now by fear rather than excitement. Fionn's heart beat madly in his chest as the angry buzz grew louder. He never should have followed Vesperia outside! They weren't ready to take on monsters! Even trained knights had trouble with them!

With a shout, Vesperia shoved him roughly aside. Stumbling, Fionn caught a glimpse of a stinger as long as his arm as it stabbed through the air where he had been only a moment before. As he regained his footing, Vesperia tossed his flowers aside and drew his sword.

"Take the flowers back to the city! I'll hold it off!" He swung at the bee, driving it back a few feet where it hovered, considering him.

"Vesperia, come on!"

"I'll handle it! Go!"

The bee was already getting over the initial surprise caused by one of its targets fighting back. They couldn't outrun it and they probably weren't a match for it, but Fionn wasn't about to leave Vesperia to fight it alone. He dropped the flowers and drew his own sword.

"What are you _doing_?"

He answered by blocking a strike from the bee's stinger. With Vesperia's hands full holding back its spiked forelegs, the attack would have gone right through him had Fionn not brought his sword down to hold it back.

"Go get your dad!"

"I'm not leaving you!"

Shoving forward with sudden ferocity, Vesperia managed to knock the bee backward. "We need some help!"

"Both of us go, or neither of us does." He watched the bee grimly as it studied them and tried to decide how to tackle two opponents.

"It's not gonna be like fighting your dad." There was something strange about Vesperia's voice, and Fionn looked over to see him grinning, eyes on the bee. "That monster isn't gonna go easy on us."

"As long as we win it's okay, right?"

"What's the plan?"

"Attack and defend when it comes after us. Try to push it back. Keep moving toward the city."

"Right. So, while it's still thinking, we should—"

"Go!"

They made a run for it. Vesperia paused just long enough to snatch up one of the bunches of flowers, but Fionn didn't have extra breath to scold him. They poured everything they had into making it even one step closer to the city. The bee was fast, though, and they hadn't gotten far before Fionn had to turn and defend. Vesperia spun, slashing at the creature, only to be swatted away. He was back on his feet in an instant, charging in heedless of the blood that oozed from the corner of his mouth. When the bee turned its attention onto him, Fionn was given the opening he needed. He caught it across the abdomen, wounding it, and the monster was quick to back off, clicking its mandibles furiously. Fionn was glancing at the blood on the end of his sword in disbelief when Vesperia grabbed his shoulder, hauling him around toward the entrance to the city.

They continued in that manner, fighting and falling back until the gateway was only a few yards distant. The relief of being so close to their goal made Fionn careless, and he took one too many steps toward safety rather than stopping to fend off attacks. The bee's stinger sliced through the top of his shoulder, throwing him to the ground. It was moving in to strike again, but suddenly Vesperia was there between him and the monster, the flowers he'd fought so hard to hold on to tossed aside as he held his sword up against the enraged bee.

"Get inside!"

"Quit telling me what to do!"

Fionn struggled to his feet, but he couldn't raise his sword properly. Blood was soaking into his shirt, dying it red and running freely down his arm. He lunged forward anyway, slamming his good shoulder into the bee and forcing it back. Vesperia took one look at him and a shout of absolute rage tore from his throat.

Fionn's father had only taught them the basics of sword fighting. He had insisted that they first learn how to wield their weapons properly without the aid of artes or magic. So, when Fionn watched Vesperia use an Azure Edge attack against the bee, he froze in shock. Vesperia should not have been able to do that. There was no one who would have taught him.

Suddenly, there were hands grabbing Fionn from behind, pulling him back toward the city. A knight rushed past him to grab Vesperia who struggled loose in order to get to his flowers even as two more knights ran by to make short work of the bee. The boys were hurried back inside the barrier and given healing gels. There were a lot of loud, angry accusations and arguments thrown back and forth over their heads, but they ignored most of it, grinning triumphantly over the small bouquet of yellow flowers they'd won for Estellise.

In the end, a knight was sent to escort them both home. Though by that time they were rather sadly wilted and beaten up, Vesperia carried his flowers proudly, and even managed to convince the knight to let them detour through the marketplace to buy a pot for them. He invited Fionn to the birthday celebration the next evening and made him promise to come. They talked about their extended battle against the bee and all their little victories throughout. Vesperia hadn't been in such high spirits since before his sister had been confined to the palace.

Fionn wanted to ask about the arte he'd used, but he didn't dare in front of the knight. If Vesperia had been training in secret, they would talk about it later, when it was just the two of them. He didn't think it was that simple, though. If he had been practicing artes, Vesperia would have told him.

By the time they reached Fionn's house, much of their exuberance had died down. Even Vesperia seemed to have realized that they might have to face consequences for having left the city without permission. Fionn's father came out as they were coming up the walk and looked from the boys to the knight.

"What happened?"

"Found them fighting a bee just outside the gate, sir."

"We had to get a gift for my sister." Vesperia held up the drooping blossoms. "I got us real swords just in case, so—"

Recognizing the look in his father's eyes, Fionn stepped forward. "It was my idea. I—"

Good intentions didn't save either of them from a solid cuff on the ears. Fionn rubbed his hands over the fresh, throbbing pain as Vesperia stood perfectly still, clutching the flowerpot and scowling at the ground.

When Fionn's father spoke, his voice was as sharp and heavy as any sword. "There is absolutely no reason for either of you to leave the safety of the city. You can forget about becoming knights if you can't even follow simple rules. I expected better from both of you. You're supposed to look out for one another. If one of you gets a foolish idea into his head, the other ought to know well enough to stop him."

He held out his hand expectantly, and Fionn passed over the sword Vesperia had brought him and watched as his father stepped forward to hand it to the knight and ask him to see Vesperia back to the palace. As they left, he knelt before Fionn, checking briefly to be sure his shoulder was whole and healed before pulling him into a crushing hug. Over his father's shoulder, Fionn could see that Vesperia had paused and half turned to watch them, his face curiously blank.

* * *

Vesperia came to get him for the party the next day, although it was fairly obvious that he'd shown up as much to get away from the palace as to make sure Fionn was still coming. He waited impatiently for Fionn to find something approaching suitable to wear, and then the two of them set off into the city. Though he talked on and on about all the special preparations and tasty foods being made for the celebration, Vesperia was in no rush to get back. He meandered through alleys and side streets, taking as roundabout a path as he could manage.

"Did you get in trouble?" Fionn asked between enthusiastic descriptions of cakes.

"Nope. Those old turkeys on the Council can't do a thing to me."

"What about the empress? Didn't she get mad when she heard?"

Vesperia shrugged, his pace slowing even further. "She just said I should be more careful."

"At least you didn't get punished. I only get to come tonight because the princess invited me. After this, I'm not allowed to play with you for two weeks."

"_What_? That's not fair!" He turned back, suddenly in a hurry. "I'll tell your dad it was my idea! He'll _have_ to—"

"He's out on patrol today."

With a sigh, Vesperia stopped in his tracks. He turned around and marched back to where Fionn stood waiting, and they resumed the walk to the palace.

"Sorry I got you in trouble," he mumbled.

"It's okay." Then, because it felt like that hadn't been enough somehow, he reached out to hold Vesperia's hand.

The knights on duty at the palace gates barely gave them a second glance. Neither did any of the other guards on patrol that they passed. Vesperia ignored them in turn, though he'd started walking a lot faster than Fionn liked. It was the first time he'd ever been inside the palace, and he kept falling behind as he stared up at the sky-high ceilings or peered down the endless halls with as much wonder as had filled him upon finding that expansive patch of flowers. As they walked through echoing halls as wide as city streets, it seemed to Fionn that the entirety of the lower quarter could have fit within the towering marble walls.

They passed knights and servants and nobles, all manner of people who bustled past without a glance or a word. Fionn watched them go, strangely unsettled. In the lower quarter, you could barely have a conversation with the person walking beside you over all the commotion some days. In the palace, a thick hush had fallen over everything, despite the echoing of footsteps that carried throughout. People acknowledged each other rarely and with little more than a stiff nod, rather than the grins or shouts or handshakes of the lower classes. If the palace was like a city unto itself, it wasn't a proper city. It didn't feel alive in the same way that the lower and public—even the royal—quarters felt, and Fionn started to understand what Estellise and Vesperia had meant when they had described it to him.

He kept sneaking glances at Vesperia, at the boy he'd spent three years tearing through the lower quarter with, three years of shouting and exploring, racing, sparring, and fighting. He remembered how excited Vesperia had been to get out of the city, and about that too-wide grin of his when he'd squared off against the bee. He tried to imagine Vesperia actually living in the chilly stillness of the palace and couldn't. It didn't fit.

He soon stopped staring, instead hurrying to keep pace with Vesperia in the hopes that they were headed someplace interesting. They made their way through a labyrinth of halls before coming to a stop in front of a door indistinguishable from all the others. Vesperia knocked sharply and waited impatiently until a maid answered.

"The princess is preparing for the celebration and can't come out to play just now." She spoke before Vesperia had even had a chance to ask anything, and didn't bother waiting for a response, either. The boys found themselves staring at a door that had been shut firmly in their faces.

"Emily doesn't like me," Vesperia explained unnecessarily. "Come on. Let's go play in the garden."

"Can I see your room?"

"Garden's better. I've got a couple swords stashed away."

Fionn followed along without further question, and it wasn't long before they exchanged lofty ceilings and echoing halls for the expansive hush of the palace gardens. It was still quiet outside, but there was a different quality to it, softened as it was by the sound of wind slipping through leaves and the laughing gurgle of fountains. Vesperia led them down a wide, sweeping staircase flanked by sloping beds of dark-centered, white flowers that spilled out over bright green grass. Paving stones formed of a shimmering white rock, smooth and perfectly round, led off in five directions from the base of the stairs. They took the center path that led straight to the entrance to a hedge maze.

Towering bushes spotted with white camellias surrounded them as the paving stones stopped abruptly just outside the maze. Vesperia chose his paths without hesitation and they passed dead ends and hidden courtyards, gazebos, fountains, statues, and small, carefully cultivated flowerbeds. The entirety of the garden was green and white—grass and stone, leaves and flowers—and Fionn understood a little better why Estellise had been so amazed by the poorly kept up flower patch next to his door, and why Vesperia had been so determined to bring her wildflowers.

Eventually, they came to a dead end, nearly hidden down a narrow, camellia hallway. Before them was an expanse of stark white gravel stretching all the way to the trunks of the dark green bushes. They were somewhere close to the center of the maze. It felt isolated, and Fionn knew without having to be told that Vesperia had found a place to make his own where almost no one else ever came. True to his word, he pulled a pair of dull-edged practice swords out from under the bushes and a thin cover of gravel, and handed one over.

"There used to be a bush here, one of those little ones in the pots where the branches were cut into little balls around the trunk. They took it away when I started using it as a practice dummy."

He didn't need a dummy now that he had an opponent, and the two boys crossed swords, drawing on their training under Fionn's father as they attacked and parried. What started out as simple sparring soon turned into a real match. Although Vesperia had been a quick learner, he lacked discipline and a few years' worth of basic drills. He was fast, but sloppy. He left himself open too often and if his improvising sometimes surprised Fionn and became a brief advantage, it was never enough to win him the fight. Time and time again, Fionn disarmed him or knocked him to the ground or scored what would have been a fatal hit in a real fight. Every time he lost, Vesperia came back more determined to win. He ignored Fionn's helping hand, wiped his scratched and bloodied palms off on his dusty clothes, and held up his sword, challenge shining bright in his eyes.

They kept at it for hours until Fionn finally called a halt and sat down on the gravel. Vesperia remained standing over him, shifting restlessly even after all his losses. Eventually, he sighed and hid his swords away, then started back out into the maze.

"Come on. There's a fountain this way."

He led them once more unhesitatingly through a series of twists and turns until the path opened up around them to reveal a small statuary garden with a fountain as its focal point. They drank from the cool water and washed off, splashing their faces and soaking their already messy clothes. Vesperia dropped to sprawl out on the thick grass, and Fionn joined him, staring up at the sunset sky boxed in by walls of green.

"How did you learn that arte?"

Vesperia had to have been expecting the question. His answer came immediately, without a hint of surprise, or even pride. "I saw a couple knights practicing it."

"And they taught you?"

"No. I just sort of figured it out. It's not hard. Want me to teach you?"

He thought about that for a moment, about how his father had told him that the best way to be ready to face monsters or men was to be sure that the basics were second nature. He remembered the look on his father's face when he'd looked at all that blood on his shirt and found the hole from where the bee's stinger had torn through.

"…No. That's okay. Dad'll teach me."

They fell quiet, and Fionn wondered again where Vesperia was from. Two years ago, he had admitted that Estellise wasn't his real sister, that he'd been found one morning in a flower bed, and that he couldn't use magic, which meant he wasn't even from the Empire. There wasn't much to help Fionn guess where he might have come from, though. Krityans couldn't use magic either, but they weren't fighters, not like Vesperia who never seemed to tire of it. And what did it mean that he had been able to learn an arte just by watching?

Abruptly, Vesperia leapt to his feet and began walking away. Fionn had to scramble to follow, not liking the idea of getting lost in the maze. He didn't say a word all the way through the hedges or up the pristine walkway. On the first of the stairs, however, he paused and looked over the low rail at the bobbing cascade of flowers.

"Those are anemones," he said, quietly.

It only took Fionn a moment to remember where he'd heard the name of that flower, but in that time, Vesperia had already started up the stairs.

"That's where they found you?"

"Yeah. Weird place, huh? It's right in the middle of the palace. Pretty hard for someone to sneak in a kid and leave him."

"I wonder who they were." There were any number of diplomats that resided in the palace from all sorts of places where magic wasn't common. "Do you think it's someone who lives here, after all?"

Vesperia scowled fiercely at the steps and didn't answer.

"That can't be right, though," Fionn said quickly. "They can't really live here. They must be—"

"Just leave it."

"But—"

"Forget it! Never mind." They stepped back into the palace where shouting felt like a criminal offense. "Come on. They'll want us to change. I can loan you something."

It turned out that Vesperia's room was actually a set of apartments with furniture of dark, polished wood, gilt, and marble sitting atop colorful rugs. Huge windows, their curtains drawn back, looked out over the garden, and Fionn noticed that he could just barely see the gravel courtyard within the maze and the very edge of the anemone bed. Vesperia paid no attention to the windows, going instead to a small table ringed by three chairs. A covered platter had been left on top of the table along with a pitcher of juice grown warm and two glasses. He set the lid of the tray aside to reveal an assortment of sandwiches and sweets, and wolfed one down as he motioned for Fionn to help himself. They ate hungrily and, though Fionn wondered why no one had called them in to lunch, he didn't ask.

They dressed quickly after their snack. Vesperia had been able to find him a suit of clothes to borrow that was nicer than anything he had at home. He felt strange in the midnight blue silks with their gold trim, and Vesperia looked even stranger, garbed for once in something suitable for his official status. Until that very moment, it hadn't ever really sunk in for Fionn, but his best friend was the prince of the Empire.

Vesperia caught him looking and frowned. "What?"

"Nothing." He grinned, seeing the fight in him that was waiting only for an excuse, for the wrong choice of words or a fit of laughter at his expense. Fionn reached out and grabbed his hand. "Let's go. I don't want to miss the party."

Still bruised and drooping, the wildflowers were waiting on a small table next to a window in the bedroom. Vesperia picked up the little pot, shifting it carefully without letting go of Fionn's hand. Together, they braved the strange atmosphere of the halls once again, becoming two more among a growing, slowing, bunched up line of people as they got closer to the ballroom. The festivities were already well underway, and a footman was announcing the guests as they entered. He hesitated upon seeing Fionn, but announced them anyway, unwilling to disobey orders from a suddenly very imperial-sounding Vesperia.

Inside, the ballroom held chaos of a very different kind from that of the lower quarter. Hundreds of conversations overlapped in a rush of cultured speech and refined laughter. People in voluminous finery swept past in search of friends, food, or a path to the dance floor. None of it came close to the roar and bustle of the lower quarter, however. The people present had come to see and be seen enjoying the frivolity. There was little other purpose, and no sense of urgency despite the rushing forms and constant noise. It was loud and crowded, but still oddly restrained in a way the lower quarter never was. Vesperia pulled Fionn through it all, walking with his head held high, but Fionn still found it strange to think either of them really ought to be there.

They went together through the crowds, right up to the central dais where Estellise was enthroned and surrounded by extravagant gifts. She brightened up when she saw them and slipped off the high throne to come to the edge of the dais to meet them.

"Fionn, welcome! I'm so glad you could come."

He felt a bit silly, puffing up with importance over the fact that the princess was happy he'd made it but, as with Vesperia, he had never really seen her marked by her status until that night. Beneath the trappings of royalty, however, he could still see his friend Estellise, the kind girl who grew flowers and wanted to learn how to wield a sword. She reached out and took his free hand as Vesperia held out the flowers to her.

"We got these for you from outside the city. They're wildflowers."

There was delight in her face, but whatever she would have said was lost at the sound of a scornful snort. Immediately, Vesperia whirled to face whoever had dared, and Estellise tore her hand from Fionn's to keep the flowers from crashing to the floor.

A small crowd of nobles stood nearby, their attention focused sharply on Fionn and his friends. One of the men, probably the one who'd snorted, looked very deliberately down his long nose at them before turning back to those gathered around him. When he spoke, however, he made it clear that his words weren't only for that bejeweled group to hear.

"I suppose it's true what they say about like calling to like. Find one weed in the garden, and it's sure to bring more. Why, before you know it, the whole place will be overrun."

One of his friends was stupid enough to add: "That doesn't say much for the gardener" and that was the last straw for Vesperia. Unwilling to overlook a slight against the family that had taken him in, he launched himself forward and knocked the last man who had spoken to the floor. The original troublemaker got him by the back of his coat, but Vesperia twisted out of it and kicked the man hard in the shin. Fionn was just starting forward to help when an old knight with a drooping moustache stepped forward.

"Master Vesperia!"

Immediately, Vesperia went still, hands clenched at his sides. For a moment, Fionn thought he might try to explain himself, but instead, he took off, disappearing into the crowds without looking back. When Estellise stepped forward, the soldier bowed to her.

"Thank you for stepping in, Sir Dropwart."

"Of course, your highness. Used to be a bit hot under the collar myself in the old days. Sure the young master must have heard something he thought worth objecting to. Oh! I _do_ apologize, my lords." Dropwart turned to fix the nobles with a stare much sharper than his tone. "Couldn't have actually heard anything of the sort. Just a bit of talk about gardeners, what? Stumbled upon an awfully poetic metaphor for our good empress, though. Sure you didn't mean it the way you were talking just now. Sure you wouldn't use such a lovely metaphor to criticize our good empress. Practically treasonous."

They slunk off in a hurry, no longer smiling, and Estellise thanked Dropwart once again. Fionn followed her back to her throne and held the wildflowers while she took her seat.

"Does that happen often?"

She nodded sadly, touching one of the petals delicately. A flash of magic briefly dazzled Fionn's sight, and when his eyes cleared, the flowers stood tall and strong once again.

"He doesn't always lose his temper so quickly. Would you mind going to find him? They'll miss me if I leave."

"I don't really know my way around this place."

"That's all right. I think I know where he would have gone." She pointed across the ballroom, out the open doors and into the night held at bay by the golden glow of the festivities. "Go straight out that way until you come to the palace wall. Turn right and follow it to the stables. Vesperia will be there, in the back. Here." She took a golden, rose-shaped pin off her sash and fastened it over Fionn's heart. "In case anyone tries to stop you," she said, smiling.

"Thanks. I'll bring him back."

"Don't worry about that. Just make sure he's all right."

"Okay."

"And Fionn…." Something about her bright smile made him freeze up. "Thank you for the flowers."

He felt his face growing hot, and he spun on his heel, hurrying to leave the ballroom behind. It was much cooler outside away from the revelers, and Fionn took a grateful breath of fresh air. Decorative lux blastia lanterns had been placed at regular intervals in the outer wall and that of the palace itself, making it easier to see. He followed Estellise's directions, trailing his left hand along the rough, stone wall surrounding the palace, until the night breeze took on the scent of the stables and he knew he was getting close. The building came into view around a bend, unbelievably large, stretching off so far that the other end was nearly lost to the gloom. Hostlers and stablehands milled around, cleaning or seeing to the horses and talking amongst themselves. The blastia lights glowed brightest where they congregated around the main gate, and smaller lights bobbed inside. There was one small, open window on the side that Fionn had approached. No lights seemed to be coming near, but he could just barely make out smudges of dirt, as if someone had needed a foothold. He touched the golden rose to remind himself that he was allowed to be there, then quickly climbed in through the window.

He dropped and landed in a pile of hay. There was a bit of snorting and stamping from the nearest horses at the sudden intrusion but they quieted quickly and no one seemed to have noticed. He took a moment to let his eyes adjust to what faint starlight made it into the stable. Apparently, he'd landed where the dogs bedded down. The adults eyed him, sniffing warily as the puppies crowded around curiously, looking for attention. As he petted them, Vesperia's voice came to him out of the darkness.

"You must smell like me. Usually, Lambert doesn't like strangers."

Vesperia was tucked away in the farthest corner, hidden so deep in shadow that Fionn might never have noticed him had he not spoken up. Crawling through a wriggling mass of warm, furry bodies, Fionn went to sit next to him. There was a puppy in Vesperia's lap, and it stretched to sniff Fionn's face, tickling his nose with the straw it was chewing on.

"These are the dogs they train to help the knights, right?"

"Yeah. This is Repede." He ruffled the puppy's fur. "Lambert's his dad. He's Captain Niren's dog. The captain's late getting back, though, so I've been coming to see Lambert for him."

"My dad knows Niren. They've been assigned to missions together, before."

They swapped stories, both telling slightly different versions of the same events. With each retelling, Vesperia emerged a little more from the gloom he'd sunk into until it seemed even the shadows had lost their hold on him. They stayed for hours in that warm and hidden corner and eventually fell asleep only to be woken at dawn by a stablehand. Vesperia walked him home, Repede tagging along and running circles around their feet. Fionn's father was waiting for him and, although Vesperia tried to explain, he was told firmly that Fionn was not allowed to play, then sent home.

Later that day, Repede came back on his own, bearing a note from Vesperia. With the puppy as a go-between, the boys passed messages back and forth for a week. Then, halfway through his punishment, Fionn learned from his father that Niren had been killed while carrying out a mission. He insisted on going to the funeral with his father, certain that Vesperia would be there. Sure enough, he stood at the very front of all those assembled, flanked by Lambert and Repede, pale and silent, eyes fixed on the coffin.

Fionn went straight to him. Vesperia's hands had been clenched tight around the hem of his coat, but he was quick to take Fionn's hand with a grip so tight that it trembled. Later, even though Fionn was still not supposed to be able to see him, his father said nothing when Vesperia followed them home and, that night, he tucked both boys into Fionn's bed. Vesperia cried in his sleep, and Fionn pretended not to notice how red his eyes were the next morning.

The two of them were nigh inseparable after that. The palace tutors seemed to have given up on Vesperia and he was allowed to come and go as he pleased. What education he got came when he could be convinced to sit through lessons with Fionn and the other lower quarter children. He never skipped any lessons with Fionn's father and, when they began learning to use artes, Fionn didn't mention that it was a skill Vesperia already had. They were thirteen when he first took them outside the city wall and, once he was sure the boys and Repede could take care of themselves, Fionn's father gave them permission to explore—carefully.

They had been enjoying that particular freedom for a year when Repede got hurt. A small flock of ax beaks had descended upon them, and Vesperia had let himself get cut off and cornered. He'd been able to hold his own well enough against two, but when a third turned on him, he was in trouble. Fionn hadn't been able to get there in time, but Repede had. There was a great deal of noise and chaos, and Fionn had struggled to finish off his opponent as quickly as he could in order to go help his friends.

The battle was ending by the time he got there. Vesperia had the last monster down, and his blade fell with cold finality, ending its life. Behind him, Repede lay on the ground, whining and trying to hide his bloodied face beneath a paw. Fionn went straight to him, pulling out a gel and trying to remember a healing spell. Silently, helplessly, Vesperia stood over him, and Fionn remembered in a sudden flash the look on his face at Niren's funeral. He was certain that if he dared look away from Repede that Vesperia would be wearing the same expression once more.

"He's not going to die."

Vesperia held his peace and waited for the light of the healing spell to die down.

In the end, Repede lost the eye. Vesperia took it hard at first, feeling at fault for having let himself get into a bad situation. He seemed easier about it after a few days, however, and confided in Fionn that he had spoken with Repede and they had come to an understanding. Fionn wasn't entirely sure whether to believe him or not, but Vesperia and Repede had always had a strange sort of bond between them.

After that day, Fionn sensed something different in his friend. His focus when they sparred was sharper, and something seemed to burn inside of him just below the surface, fueling his drive to become a knight. They both studied harder, fought with more determination in order to reach that goal, mindful that in two years' time, they would have their first chance to prove themselves.


	8. Eclipse

A/N: =)

Disclaimer: The characters in this story are from _Tales of Vesperia_ and do not belong to me.

* * *

While Vesperia had been dropping off Karol at Flynn's apartment, everyone else had been out searching for any sign of Estellise. With his family safe, he could now turn his attention to aiding the search…or at least, that's what he was trying to do. His mind kept wandering even as he scanned the streets and buildings for any clue as to where Estellise had been taken.

He kept seeing Flynn's face. He'd never seen such shock in those too-blue eyes. Flynn hadn't looked happy, and Vesperia had been in too much of a hurry to join the search to choose a better exit. Flynn must be furious with him.

More than that, Karol had seen Vesperia fighting monsters. He was going to spill half the story to Flynn before Yuri would have a chance to explain. The only relief he had was that Karol had promised not to say anything about Estellise having been taken. Flynn would want to join in the search or call the cops, and neither of those were acceptable options. Without being able to summon Fionn's strength and magic, Flynn would only be a hindrance in a fight, and if the cops got involved, everything would be hopelessly slowed down and screwed up.

As if things hadn't gotten plenty complicated already.

Back at the fairgrounds, Rita had blown up on him after Judith's revelation. She'd blamed Vesperia for Estellise's kidnapping, and she might have had good reason. According to the girls, the person who had taken Estellise and disappeared with her into the night had been none other than the Commandant of the Lunar Empire, Alexei Dinoia.

"Should have listened to Repede," Vesperia muttered as he raced across rooftops.

Not that it necessarily would have made a great deal of difference. Knowing who the man had been didn't tell them who he had become. It would have been almost impossible to have found him before he kidnapped Estellise, but that hadn't stopped Rita from placing the blame squarely on Vesperia's shoulders. If only he hadn't left her side, maybe they would have been able to stop Alexei.

What else could he have done, though? Estellise was capable of fighting off monsters. Karol wasn't. Even knowing how things had ended up, Vesperia was certain that he would have made the same choice. Karol was _alive_ because Vesperia had chosen to help him rather than stay with Estellise. Her life wasn't in immediate danger. They could get her back from Alexei. If he'd wanted her dead, he could have killed her at the carnival. He needed her for something. All Vesperia and the others had to do was find him before he carried out his plan. They would get Estellise out of his clutches, kick his traitorous ass, and then Yuri would have to face Flynn.

He was not looking forward to that last part at all.

Judith's ring tone sounded from his phone. Barely slowing, he answered, eyes on the rooftops before him, searching out his next foothold before he reached the edge.

"Anything?"

"I'm with Repede. He's got something." Her voice was soft through the speaker. While she hadn't taken Rita's side against him, neither had she stood up for him. "We're heading toward downtown. I've already contacted the others."

"On my way."

It was the direction he'd been heading in anyway, and he hung up as he cleared a leap between two roofs. Before him, he could see Zaude Tower, the tallest building in the city, rising above the rest of the skyline, pointing at the full moon. He shivered at the sight and had a feeling he knew just where they would find Estellise.

With a definite goal in sight, he picked up the pace, trying his best to ignore the growing pain in his side. His jarring landings as he leapt between rooftops weren't helping matters. He only hoped that he would be up for a fight once he got there.

Judith was waiting for him a couple blocks out from the tower and led him down to where Rita stood in an alleyway. Light shone from her magical display, which hung in the air like an intricate neon sign. She ignored Vesperia completely as her fingers flew over the keys, the forgotten language of the Lunar Empire no secret to her. The words seemed slippery to Vesperia's senses, their meaning wavering between half-understood text and curving gibberish. He rubbed his eyes, and gave up trying to read any of it. The image of Zaude Tower's framework provided enough explanation for what Rita was doing.

"Are we waiting on the old man?"

"He's doing some reconnaissance. We thought it best to go in as fully prepared as possible."

Vesperia nodded. They weren't facing a pack of snarling beasts, this time. They were up against the Commandant, a clever bastard by all accounts, and apparently the source behind the monster attacks. He was strong, and he had Estellise. Vesperia didn't have to be told that charging in was a bad idea.

Even still, he was impatient. He wanted to be doing something, not standing around waiting to hear what the plan of attack was while that son of a bitch could be doing who knew what to Estellise. When he caught Rita glaring at him while he paced, he tried to force himself to be still. Standing next to Repede, Judy was leaning on her spear in the shadows near the mouth of the alley, and he joined them there, looking out at Zaude Tower.

Cars rushed past every now and again, but traffic was startlingly light. There were no pedestrians to be found which was almost unheard of. Even the constant noise of the city seemed hushed and almost hesitant to come too close to the tower.

"Where is everybody?"

"They're all doing the best they can to keep their distance from this place. Alexei has some sort of barrier set up to discourage people from lingering in the area. Can't you feel it?"

"I feel like fighting something."

He watched her smile widen and noticed that her hand was practically trembling with the force of its grip on her spear. "Yes. That's what it feels like for me, too."

"That's how what feels for you, Judith darlin'?"

Vesperia only barely kept from jumping out of his skin at the sound of Raven's voice just behind him. He turned slowly, expression calm, and regarded the slumped figure in the magenta coat. Raven had a talent for hiding his presence that was downright disconcerting.

The light from Rita's display winked out and she joined them. "Well? Is she up there? What did you find out?"

"Our pretty princess seems ta be okay for now, so put your worries on that score ta bed."

"What's going on up there?"

"Not really sure. Alexei's got somethin' big in th' works. Looked like he was still settin' up when I came down. Both of 'em are up at th' very top, but he's got her locked up in some sorta spell. We're gonna be contending with some serious magic here, kiddies."

Vesperia brought his sword to rest upon his shoulder. "We can handle it. What's the plan?"

"I'm thinkin' it'd be best to—"

A scream tore through the still night air, interrupting Raven and calling everyone's attention up toward the top of the tower where the voice had come from. Vesperia knew that voice, and he was off running before the others could stop him. They'd run out of time for good ideas.

The building was unlocked. Maybe Alexei hadn't had time to seal it up, or maybe he just hadn't bothered. He'd filled the lobby with enough monsters to deter pretty much anyone, but it was going to take a hell of a lot more than that to keep Vesperia from getting to Estellise.

He was upon the beasts before they had a chance to charge him, his sword slicing a path through their numbers as if they were no more substantial than dandelion fluff on the wind. The immediacy of fighting for his sister, for his own life, filled him with a dangerous thrill and deadly purpose, energizing him as it carried away the lingering pain from his earlier injury. He forgot himself in these battles, or parts of himself, at least: the unimportant parts, the dead weight, the things that would slow him down. Vesperia was reduced to a focus as sharp as his blade, and woe to anything that stood in his way.

Spells sizzled through the air to either side of him. Arrows flew ahead, downing targets far out of his reach. A shining arc was the afterimage of a spear. A blur of midnight fur was preceded by the flash of a blade. The others had abandoned any thoughts of a plan. All that mattered was reaching Estellise.

They fought their way through to the elevator bay. Rita's earlier scan of the building had indicated that Alexei hadn't tampered with their mechanics, and the group piled in and hit the button for the very top.

"He's betting on the monsters stopping us," Vesperia muttered.

He stared down at the sword in his hand, finding it dizzyingly incongruous to be looking at a naked blade held within an elevator. The metal door reflected his image dully back to him: a battered convenience store clerk in strange black clothing, standing amid people who looked as if they had stepped out of a circus sideshow. For a moment, he was solidly Yuri, a young man just barely into adulthood whose life had been hijacked by ghosts and monsters. He hadn't asked for this, for any of it, but he'd accepted his place by Estelle's side, and now she needed him more than ever.

_It's my life_, he thought. _My choices. I don't care if you're lending a hand, but you had your chance to live your life. This one's mine._

There was no response from the memory of a man that existed only in his head, and he realized with no small amount of relief that there wouldn't be. Vesperia was only memories, nothing more. He couldn't talk, couldn't think, couldn't act for himself. When Yuri pulled on his persona, he inherited those memories and skills, but the will behind them…that was gone. The most Vesperia could do through him was to parrot words spoken ages ago. There was no danger of him taking over. There never had been, not if Yuri wasn't willing to let it happen. He tightened his grip on the sword and smiled thinly behind the scarf that still covered most of his face. Time to show what _he_ could do.

The elevator let them off on the top floor. More of the monsters were waiting for them. They had infested the whole building it seemed, though luckily they weren't bright enough to break into the elevator shafts or sabotage the workings. Vesperia and the others cut through easily and burst out onto the roof.

A metal spire surrounded by a cage of steel beams crisscrossing and arching rose up from the center of the roof, gleaming dully in the moonlight. Beneath it, lit by moon and magic, stood the former Commandant of the Lunar Empire, Alexei Dinoia. There was a cold and haughty look about him that matched Vesperia's memories of the man, and he barely deigned to glance away from his shifting display as the party emerged from the stairwell and spread out before him. To his right was Estellise, trapped in a globe of magic floating a few feet off the ground. She had sunk to her knees, but gathered herself and stood, pressing her hands against her prison.

"Everyone, be careful! He has Dein Nomos!"

Raven's eyes grew wide, and he almost seemed to draw back. "There's a name outta legend, for ya. How th' hell'd he get his hands on that?"

Vesperia understood what had given him pause. Dein Nomos was the ancient magical weapon bound to the imperial family. Its powers were supposed to be incredible, possibly even linked directly to those who had wielded it in times past. The blade was currently planted before Alexei, its point stuck firm in the concrete of the roof. It crackled and sparked with the energies of the magic Alexei was working, seeming almost as insubstantial at times. It was an eerie thing of openwork design, but it was still just a sword in the possession of an enemy. Vesperia knew how to deal with that. Only one man had ever beaten him with a sword, and the former Commandant was no Fionn.

"Like I give a damn." Vesperia stepped forward, staring down the length of his sword at Alexei. "Let her go right now, or we'll make you wish you'd never been reborn!"

"Short-sighted fools. Go home to your beds and continue dreaming of our forgotten past. While you slumber, I will usher in the return of our glorious Lunar Empire!"

Raven held out an arm in front of Vesperia before he could rush forward. "Commandant, how 'bout ya just put all this on hold, an' we can have a nice little talk about what's goin' on."

"He doesn't understand!" Estellise called out. "I've tried to explain, but his memories are confused! He forced the transformation before he was ready!"

"You are the ones that do not understand—you, with your pitiful modern day lives, and your tiny glimpses into the past! I know what must be done." He brandished an ancient-looking tome, its cover an unremarkable, age-faded brown. "This journal is the collected memories of a dozen lifetimes: spells and knowledge passed down through my family, accumulating across generations! This journal tells me what the power of the last princess of the Lunar Empire really is. It is a birthright, a sword, it is the key to everything!"

"He's loony," Rita muttered.

"What do you hope to gain from what you're doing, Alexei?"

Vesperia pushed past Raven. The spell circle that radiated out from the tower was still growing, twisting and changing as Alexei continued to feed into it through his display. He hoped Rita was looking for a way to throw a wrench into it, but he didn't dare look back and possibly attract attention to her if she hadn't been noticed.

"Gain? I'm going to gain back my title and my power. I'm going to call forth the Empire on earth, and the nations will bow to me. No more of these petty squabbles among humans. The Golden Age of the Lunar Empire will reign once again!"

Estellise beat fruitlessly against the magical wall that held her. "Please, Alexei, don't do this! My power is tied into the seal on the Adephagos! If you interfere with that—"

"Your power is greater than even you realize. With it, I can destroy that nightmare forever, rather than merely banishing it into the darkness. I have all the spells I need to do so."

"You're wrong! Those won't work. They're all mixed up and corrupted. Please, believe me!"

"She's right." Rita's voice was soft, not meant to carry to Alexei. "Whatever working he's throwing together right now is so tangled up that I can't make heads or tails of it. I can't get in to stop it, or even alter it. I can take a guess as to what he's planning to do, but I can tell you right now, it isn't going to work, and it isn't going to be pretty." She looked up suddenly from her display. "Get Estellise away from him. Now!"

It was all Vesperia needed to hear, and he was immediately in motion, streaking across the roof, straight at Alexei. The former Commandant raised his arms and monsters emerged from the shadows. Flying, leaping, racing through the gateway of moonlight and shadow they came, a vicious and hungry horde. They were meant as cannon fodder, as a delay tactic, and Vesperia knew it. The whole group knew it, but their progress across the roof was still slowed by the onslaught. Raven held back, picking off creatures clever enough to try and sneak up on Vesperia or Judith from behind, and providing cover for Rita as she continued trying to hack her way into Alexei's spells. Repede stuck close to Vesperia, guarding his back and speeding his passage through the thickening charge of monsters. Creatures spilled through the gateway in impossible numbers, filling the rooftop. Vesperia cast artes until he grew dizzy from the strain and felt the strength begin draining out of him. He had nearly managed to make it all the way to the base of the spire when Alexei raised his eyes from the spell and drew the sword he'd kept sheathed at his side.

"Brilliant Cataclysm!"

The initial strikes were aimed directly at Vesperia, blows from a sword that flew swift as one of Raven's arrows, and brought him down to one knee. The entirety of the roof began to glow, and magic burst forth, shining spears of force that tore through human and monster alike. Alexei's own attack had cleared away most of the weaker creatures he had summoned, but he'd also dealt heavy damage to his foes. It had been a last desperate bid for time and, as Vesperia grit his teeth against the pain and forced himself to his feet, he saw that it had been enough.

Alexei raised his arms, triumphant, and the magic gathered and surged. Estellise screamed in pain as the working sparked like lightning around and into her prison, and Vesperia had to shield his eyes as the brilliance flared like the sun. The spell surged upward, channeled up the spire and into the sky, becoming a pulsing beam of magic aimed directly at the full moon. All of them watched, transfixed, as that horrible magic struck something that caused it to warp. It thrashed like a living thing, like a creature maddened with pain, and in its thrashing, it tore a hole in the very sky itself. There was absolute stillness for a moment as they all gazed helplessly upon the void silhouetted before the full moon.

Estellise saw it coming first, and the protest that escaped her was little more than a horrified gasp. The magic had torn open a gateway, and now something was coming through. It was translucent, soaking up moonlight and letting it seep through as a hideous, blood red glow. It slipped through into their reality from some place other, some place it had been banished to in the hope of containing its unending hunger. Everyone gathered on the roof could sense the nature of the thing, even from such a great distance, and they shuddered to have the feel of it in their minds. It was ceaseless appetite, unreasoning hunger, gluttony enough to devour worlds.

"The Adephagos," Rita said. "He's really let it loose."

"I can stop it!" Alexei was making frantic alterations on his display. He had the wild-eyed look of a fanatic. "This was the price to be paid for the power of the Child of the Full Moon! I had to let it loose in order to destroy it, in order to free the power and claim it as my right!"

Estellise screamed and collapsed as the spell around her flared. The power surged up the column of light in an incandescent burst, racing into the heavens in a heartbeat. The Adephagos noticed it, but only as a curiosity. More of its tentacles pushed through the wound in the sky, reaching back to brace themselves against the very moon itself as the monster tried to force its way through into the world. It sank tentacles into the column of magic, and the light dimmed as the hole tore a little wider.

"Get Estelle!" Rita screamed. "Get her out of there! We have to cut off the magic _now_, before it comes all the way through!"

"No! I can do this! I have studied! I have prepared! This is my glorious purpose! I will not be denied my moment of triumph!"

Something—something dark and ancient and horrible, something so basic that it lacked even malevolence, was nothing but hunger without emotion or end—oozed out of the pillar of light behind Alexei. He never saw it coming as it engulfed him.

"What the hell is that?" Sword at the ready, Vesperia faced down the creature that had just devoured Alexei as if he was nothing but a little snack.

"Servants of the Adephagos!"

Vesperia looked to Estellise. Freed suddenly from her prison, she was now separated from him by this new threat. She managed to stand, but she swayed on her feet and was shaking so badly that he could see it even at such a distance.

"The spell was incomplete. It isn't strong enough to force the gateway completely open, but it's using the magic as a conduit to send its servants through. They'll devour any life in their path and become strength for the Adephagos!"

The creature hesitated, caught between going after Vesperia or Estellise. In the end, it chose Vesperia and glided forward like some faceless messenger of death. Another began slipping out of the magic behind it, and more dark forms were leaking out higher up the shining column. Vesperia took a step back and shouted over his shoulder.

"Rita, we could really use a way to shut down the rest of this spell!"

"He set this one up independent of his own magic! I'm trying to dismantle it now! Give me a minute!"

"Tall order," he muttered.

He wasn't even sure a sword would work on such an abomination, but he wasn't about to go down without a fight. He rushed the monster, slipping beneath it in an attempt to gut the thing and be done with it quickly. The attack was about as effective as trying to cut a blob of jam. His sword slid right through it, but it reformed around the cut immediately and didn't seem to take any harm. Emerging from behind the creature, he straightened quickly and spun, ready to strike once more. He wasn't fast enough.

Coldness so absolute that it burned lanced through Vesperia's stomach. He couldn't gasp, couldn't breathe. Everything that he was froze up as he was impaled by the long tail of the Adephagos' servant. He saw Estellise's eyes go wide, saw the faces of the others flash past as he was yanked off his feet and flung aside with one sharp lash of that unearthly tail. He went flying, over the edge of the roof, out into empty air over the city streets far, far below. He didn't even have time to feel fear before he slammed into the side of another building and everything went dark.


	9. The Lunar Empire, Part 2

A/N: No, I wasn't finished with this backstory nonsense.

Disclaimer: The characters and settings in this story are from _Tales of Vesperia_ and do not belong to me.

* * *

Fionn was accepted into the Knights on his sixteenth birthday. When he came down the stairs of their small house wearing the uniform he'd been given and carrying the few belongings that he would be taking with him to the palace barracks, his father looked the proudest that Fionn had ever seen him. He strode through the streets, unable to hold back his grin. Finally, he was a knight! He had been honored with the chance to serve and protect, to explore and test himself. He was part of an illustrious tradition, and he was eager to make a name for himself and do some good for all the people that had helped him over the years.

He found it a little strange, however, that Vesperia wasn't at his side as he walked through the streets. They'd talked about this for so long that the achievement wouldn't feel complete without him. Recently, he'd fallen into one of his despondent moods again, though. More and more often lately he would sink into a sort of lethargic depression and find himself a place where he could sit and quietly watch the world go by. He never spoke to Fionn about the cause of it, and guesswork only ever led back to conditions at the palace, something else Vesperia spoke of with noteworthy rarity. Surely becoming a knight would snap Vesperia out of it. Soon, they would be far too busy to brood.

The courtyard of the palace was abuzz with activity as new recruits arrived from within Zaphias and other cities all throughout the Lunar Empire. Fionn was directed to a barracks, given the time and location of the commencement address, and told to stay out of the way while everything got settled. He went and put away his things, all except for one golden, rose-shaped pin. Wondering if the authority Estellise had invested in it had survived over the years, Fionn pinned it over his heart and went for a stroll around the outside of the palace, trailing the fingers of his left hand over the stone.

He heard Vesperia before he saw him, though the sound of blade against blade was muffled by the camellia-speckled walls of the hedge maze. Fionn paused a moment before entering. In his memory, the bushes were much taller. He went slowly, halfway recalling certain landmarks and listening always for the sounds of a duel and the snatches of Vesperia's voice to use as guides. The further into the maze he went, the easier it became to understand what was being said in the pauses between the meeting of swords. He recognized Estellise's voice and smiled crookedly. Vesperia had never been one to let the Council forbid him anything, and he wanted Estellise to know how to fight. They should have known it would be useless to argue against him.

He stepped around a corner into view of the small, gravel courtyard just in time to see Vesperia send his sister stumbling backwards into a bush. Estellise knocked him flat on his ass when he went to help her out, and Vesperia laughed, admitting he'd deserved as much. They were dusting themselves off when Fionn stepped forward.

"Really, Vesperia? You can't beat me, so you resort to fighting your sister?"

Estellise peered around her brother and recognized him immediately. "Fionn!"

He only got a quick glimpse of her before she was across the courtyard, her arms around him as she hugged him for all she was worth. Pressed so tightly together, he was made acutely aware that she had grown, and he felt his face heating up as he pushed her gently back a step. She refused to let go, holding him at arms' length and looking him up and down.

"Oh, my, it's been years! You look…! You look…."

She seemed to have forgotten what it was she meant to say as she met his eyes. Fionn couldn't really blame her, as he was having a hard time thinking, himself. Estellise was…. He'd never noticed before, but she really was….

Vesperia stepped in, slinging one arm easily around Fionn's shoulders, and one around his sister's. Just like that, the moment shattered.

"Hey. The uniform suits you."

"Thanks." He shrugged out of the loose embrace, uncomfortable for no reason he could name. "Where's yours?"

In an instant, the smile vanished from Vesperia's face and he turned away. "I don't have one."

"What?" Fionn looked from him to an equally glum Estellise. "Why not?"

It was Estellise who spoke up quietly, watching her brother. "It's because of the Council. They decided that, since they can't be sure of his age—"

"Bullshit!" They flinched at the anger in his voice. "By the time next year rolls around, they'll have come up with another excuse. They're just keeping me out because they can!"

"Vesperia, please, just give it a year. I'll talk to them. I'll have mother—"

"_No_." He took a moment to compose himself and get a good look at Fionn in his new uniform before turning away once more. "She shouldn't have to waste her strength arguing with those vultures. I'll figure something out."

* * *

Fionn's first year in the Knights was even busier than he had expected. Up before the crack of dawn and in bed after dark, his days were a constant blur of chores, drills, and lessons. He excelled when it came to fighting, and he learned quickly enough how to look after the horses and care for his gear. Unfortunately, with the exception of the introduction to local monsters, he found that he had a lot of catching up to do when it came to his studies. There simply hadn't been tutors available in the lower quarter for much of what he needed to learn. With most of his free day given over to studying in the library, he had very little time left for Vesperia and Estellise, though he did see them around the palace and Vesperia showed up to watch him spar as often as not. Ironically, he actually had far less time to spend with his friends after taking up residence in the palace.

As for Estellise…she was another matter entirely. Fionn would see her walking past and forget where he was going or what he was supposed to be doing. He lost practice bouts and tripped over his own feet too many times to count because he'd accidentally caught a glimpse of her, then hadn't been able to let her out of his sight. Plenty of the other knights-in-training teased him about his clumsiness and its obvious cause, but Vesperia never said a word and Fionn was thankful for that small kindness. He found himself hoping with a nervous sort of anticipation that Vesperia would bring her along when they met up, but he was always a little relieved when Vesperia showed up alone. Fionn wasn't sure what to do about the bumbling fool he became around Estellise and, much as he wanted to see her, he also wanted her to be impressed with him. At least things between him and Vesperia were the same as they'd always been, and he could forget about his strange anxieties and the stresses of training, and simply be himself for a while.

Eventually, his busy routine became habit, and Fionn found that he wasn't quite so exhausted when he went to bed, wasn't struggling so hard during practice bouts, and was nearer the top of the class than the bottom. He pushed himself harder to avoid complacency and to continue growing stronger. He kept up his studies in the library, aiming to surpass every one of the wealthier students who had come with the advantage of having grown up with personal tutors. He worked until he was satisfied that he couldn't work any harder, and he went to bed tired, but with the certainty that he'd given his best and that his best was pretty damn good.

Still, every now and again, a restless curiosity would take hold of him. Though different from the stirring he felt at thoughts of Estellise, there was a fascination within him that he'd carried for much longer. He was researching that one morning, nose buried in a book, searching for information on worlds where people couldn't use magic but were skilled with weapons, people who sometimes seemed to be able to speak with animals….

The great doors to the library opened with a soft creak which Fionn ignored. He was immersed in a description of the Kritya's way of speaking mind-to-mind with creatures that followed them like familiars. Footsteps approached him, muffled by thick carpet, and Fionn looked up finally to see Vesperia and Repede come to a halt across the table from him.

"Have a look at this," he said excitedly, turning the book around and sliding it over. "You say you talk to Repede. Is it anything like that?"

Vesperia barely glanced at the book. He'd never shown much interest in his heritage. "I'm leaving."

"All right, all right." He pulled the book back and closed it, resigned to picking up his research when he wouldn't drive his friend away. "Have you had breakfast?"

He shook his head. "No, Fionn. I came to tell you that I'm leaving the city."

Something in his tone made it a fight for Fionn to keep up a smile. "Going monster hunting again? I'm free today. I could join you."

"No, you can't. Not if you want to stay in the Knights. I'm not leaving on a lark, I'm just... I'm just leaving."

He nearly overturned his chair in his hurry to get around the table. "For how long?"

"I don't know," he said, but he wouldn't meet Fionn's eyes. He'd always been an awful liar.

"You aren't planning on coming back, are you?" His silence was answer enough. "Is this about the Council?"

Now Vesperia met his eyes, and Fionn could see fury in him, banked and barely held back. "Of course it's about the Council! It's about the Council and the nobility and the palace and the anemone bed! It's about all of it!" He looked around suddenly at the startled faces peering up at him and those that were pretending not to have noticed, and he continued in a quieter tone. "I don't belong here."

"What about your sister? What about me? We were supposed to be knights together!"

"Grow up. You're too old to keep believing that the world will be fair just because you want it to be." The bitterness in his voice burned like acid, strong enough that Fionn couldn't believe he'd never noticed before. "As for Estellise…she's strong. She'll be fine. Keep up her lessons for me. No one else will teach her."

"That's it?" He grabbed Vesperia by the collar. "You're just going to run away like that?"

He sighed. "I'm not running away. This wasn't an easy decision."

He laid his hand lightly over Fionn's wrist, and Fionn jerked back. He could barely stand to look at his oldest friend, couldn't believe this sudden announcement. Vesperia had never said a word to him. He'd just gone and decided all on his own.

"I can't talk you out of it?"

"No."

"One last match. If you beat me—"

"It's not going to work like that this time."

"If you can't even beat me, how do you expect to survive out there on your own?"

"I won't be on my own." He scratched Repede between the ears. "Besides…do you know you're the only person who's ever beaten me? All that sparring together where you learned how I fight, and how often did you watch me when I kept practicing even after you'd had enough for the day? You know me almost as well as you know yourself, Fionn. You're my better half."

"Does it count for anything that I don't want you to go?"

"It does." He smiled sadly. "But not enough."

He heaved a sigh. "Be careful, at least. If you get yourself killed, I won't forgive you."

"Wouldn't ask you to." He started to walk away, but Fionn reached out to rest a hand on his shoulder.

"Vesperia…I hope you find what you're looking for."

"So do I."

And then he left, back down the carpeted walk and out the huge doors that closed slowly behind him.

* * *

The next three years saw Fionn given more and more important and dangerous missions with the Knights. He had made lieutenant at eighteen and celebrated with Estellise. It felt strange for the two of them to be together without Vesperia, but it was exciting too, in a completely different way than fighting was. They walked through the palace gardens together that night and when Estellise slipped her arm through his, Fionn felt light as air. He walked her back to her room and—somewhat daringly, he thought—he lifted her hand to kiss the back of her wrist. She blushed as soft a pink as some of the wildflowers he'd seen on his first day outside of the city, and he felt something similar to the awe and amazement of that unforgettable morning. When she smiled sweetly up at him, the rest of the world ceased to exist and he knew he was in love.

After that night, he began making short trips home on his days off to bring her flowers from the garden. It had fallen once more into a wild and sorry state over the years since she had been allowed out of the palace, but he restored it and began taking care of it, thinking always while he did of his princess.

During that time, both of them were receiving letters from Vesperia. He wrote them infrequently and with such lengthy and disjoined subject matter that it seemed certain every individual letter had been written over the course of days, or even weeks. He sent pressed flowers and seeds from some of the strange plants and exotic blossoms he found. He sketched children with wide grins indistinguishable from the ones in Zaphias' lower quarter, and monsters like nothing ever seen near the capital—bizarre and fantastic and sometimes nightmarish. He related funny stories and bits of information about the friends he was making. Sometimes, he talked about how much he missed them, and he asked if they would look up at the night sky, so at least he wouldn't be alone when he looked at the stars. He never provided a way for them to write back, and none of his letters allowed them to pinpoint his location. He could have been in an imperial city or with the guilds or on another world. As often as they could, Fionn and Estellise made time to look up at the night sky together, and if granting the request of someone who might as well be brother to them both started to feel more and more like an excuse as they held hands and leaned against one another, well…Fionn was sure Vesperia would forgive them that for the sake of the happiness they had found in each other.

* * *

With his rise in rank came an increase in responsibilities that often took Fionn far from the walls of Zaphias. The world was a huge and wondrous place, and he sent letters back to Estellise detailing all the places he traveled, including sketches of the landscapes and architecture. It was on one such mission into the heart of Union territory that Fionn happened to run into Vesperia in the most unlikely of places. He had been sent to the leader of the group that ran the guilds with an invitation to begin a series of peace talks. Vesperia had been in the audience chamber, just as surprised to see Fionn as Fionn was to see him. Still, the mission had to come first, and he'd tried to ignore the weight of his best friend's attention on him as he waited for the Don to read the Empire's missive.

It all went wrong. There had been treachery. The real letter had been switched out for a fake that all but declared war on the Union. Fionn's protests fell on deaf ears as he was taken to a cell. Vesperia watched the whole scene silently, eyes dark and face unreadable.

He came and found Fionn soon after and, even still reeling from what had just happened, even in a dim cell in unfriendly territory, he still knew the sound of his friend's footsteps and wasn't surprised to hear Vesperia's voice at his back.

"Looks like someone really pulled one over on you. I don't remember you being so careless."

"What are you doing here?" Humiliated and confused, Fionn couldn't even bring himself to turn around and face him.

"You thought I wouldn't even come say hello?"

"I mean here in _Dahngrest_, in a guild city, in the audience chamber of the man who essentially _runs_ the Union! Is this the answer you found? Have you turned your back on us?"

"I haven't turned my back on anyone except the Council."

"We're at _war_, Vesperia! You can't be here saying things like that and not expect me to believe that you've abandoned the Empire!"

"I don't remember you being this dramatic, either. Have I been gone that long?" Behind him, the creak of the heavy cell door echoed throughout the dungeon. "We're not at war just yet. You've got time to stop it."

Fionn took the hand offered to him and got to his feet. It wasn't until he stepped out of the cell that he realized Vesperia intended to stay behind.

"You can't honestly mean to take my place. They'll kill you if I don't make it in time."

Vesperia settled in on the cot, apparently completely unconcerned. "Better hurry then. If they kill me, there really might be a war."

"You—!" He sighed. "I'll let you have it over this when I get back. I won't fail."

"I trust you."

He trusted him with his life, with the fate of two nations. With that sort of pressure, Fionn couldn't afford to fail. He snuck out of the Union headquarters, the building almost deserted with all the guildsmen off rallying their own men to war. Somehow, he got to his horse and got out of the city, feeling like a target the entire way in his imperial uniform. Prince Ioder was not far away, stationed in the nearby imperial stronghold of Heliord where the talks would have been held—would still be held. He had to believe that he would be able to reach the prince in time and obtain a new letter. If the Union had received a fake, then surely the orders sent to the Knights would have been changed as well. Only a new letter of command from a member of the imperial family would set things right.

Hours away, in the imperial city of Heliord, Estellise's cousin Ioder was awaiting the Union's answer to the official letter. As a potential heir to the throne should anything happen to the empress and her daughter, he had been sent to assure the Union of the Empire's earnestness in seeking peace. Now, Fionn was glad he had been. He was going to need something directly from the imperial family to convince both sides to lay down their arms. He only hoped he would be able to explain the situation, obtain a new letter, and make it back on time.

As he rode, he wracked his brain trying to think of who the traitors could have been, but, in the end, there were too many possible suspects. He didn't know his own men as well as he'd thought, and the burden of guilt rested as much on his shoulders for taking too little care regarding the safety of the message. They would find the traitors, he would see to that personally, but it was a matter for another time. First, the coming war had to be averted at all costs. Thinking of Vesperia sitting the cell meant for him, Fionn tightened his hold on the reins and sent up a brief prayer for the success of his mission.

He pushed his mount hard the entire way, knowing the journey was taking a toll on her, but unable to do aught else. She bore him through the darkness, nearly running down small monsters that emerged to block their path, and leaving others in the dust. Twice, they were forced to stop when packs of larger creatures hoping for an easy kill surrounded them or blocked their way. Fionn dismounted to cut the beasts down, cursing them for their cunning and hunger and the time they had cost him, then swung back up into the saddle and raced off once more.

There were still a few scant hours before dawn when he arrived, and he made such a racket demanding to be seen that he woke half the fort, Ioder included. Luckily, the young prince was smart enough to realize that the situation required immediate attention, and he had Fionn brought into the office he had been assigned for his stay.

He spoke quickly as soon as they were alone, trying to convey as many details as possible without wasting one precious second more than necessary. Ioder listened attentively, asking few questions. He was pulling out blank sheets of paper even as Fionn finished speaking. A servant brought in tea and a platter of sliced meat and bread. Ioder indicated it with a quick flick of his quill.

"Eat," he said. "You'll need your strength for the return trip."

As he followed orders, Fionn took the opportunity to study Estellise's cousin. He'd only met him once before, and Ioder hadn't made much of an impression. What he had noticed had been Vesperia's dislike of the prince. It was nothing terribly overt, just a sense that he wasn't comfortable around Ioder. Stranger still, he hadn't seen anything in Ioder's behavior that would have caused that. If anything, he was as friendly toward Vesperia as he was toward Estellise. When he'd asked about it later, Vesperia had changed the subject and Fionn had all but forgotten about it. He remembered now, and wondered what it was his friend had disliked about Ioder. The prince seemed to be intelligent and serious. He was responding to the situation quickly and appropriately. As he set the letter aside and began to write a second copy, Fionn read it from across the desk and approved of the contents. Whatever it was that Vesperia had seen in the young noble wasn't readily apparent.

"I'll be sending you with both of these. Hand one off to the leader of the Union, and read the other to your knights. With any luck, this won't have damaged our bid for peace beyond repair. I'll set a few of my people to begin investigating. You do the same on your end. I shouldn't have to tell you to be careful who you trust."

"Yes, sir. Thank you, sir."

He was trying to collect the letters and salute and bow and back out the door all at once. The few minutes of calm that had interrupted the urgency of the situation had left his head spinning. He felt unsteady on his feet and a little dazed, but the need to press on was an undeniable compulsion. He had another long ride back to Dahngrest and a war to halt before he would even have a chance to think about catching his breath once more. In the midst of all that, it was a little startling to hear Ioder's soft laugh.

"You didn't mention how you escaped, but would I be right in thinking that you found my cousin Vesperia among the mighty of the Union?"

"How did you—?"

"He had to be somewhere, and you had to have an advocate that could convince the Union to let you slip away. If you see him again…would you tell him that we miss him and would like to see him back home in the palace?"

"Yes, sir. Of course."

He'd have said that to Vesperia, anyway, but having the thought come from Ioder as well brought a faint smile to his face. Vesperia had friends and family in the Empire. He would have to return.

The stablehands were waiting for him with a fresh mount, a huge beast, armored and no doubt well-trained to deal with the monsters that scavenged the roads. Fionn set out immediately, invigorated by hope and determination and the constant awareness of time ticking away, measured in tints of lightening gray as the hidden sun crept ever closer to the horizon. The monsters were scarcer so close to dawn, and those that did try to get in the way were ridden down and trampled beneath iron-shod hooves.

Even with all his haste, even with the best mount Heliord had had to offer, Fionn still barely made it back in time. Letters held high, he charged between the two massed armies as the sun rose, and it was as if he brought the glorious light of truth with him. He shouted to the knights to lay down their arms, calling the command until every last one had obeyed. He read Ioder's words aloud, revealing the treachery that had brought them to that precipice and the wish for peace that now held them back. Don Whitehorse himself stepped forward and came to meet him, one hand extended for his own copy of the letter, and a smile stretched wide across his face that reminded Fionn too much of his oldest friend.

He was lost amid a riot of activity, soldiers standing down and looking for orders, guildsmen milling about and shouting for news of what was to come, and so many plans to be made for meetings and strategies and questions that it seemed a wonder there would be enough hours in the day to contain it all. The tension of the morning hadn't been fully banished, but it was eased by the relief of a catastrophe averted. People went back to their business wearing strained smiles and keeping a tight grip on the fragile hope they'd been given. The Empire and Union had long been rivals when they weren't outright enemies, and the idea of peace between them was still difficult to believe in.

Vesperia was gone by the time Fionn had a chance to look for him. He had left a note with one of the guildsmen.

_I saw myself out when they came to tell me you'd done your job. Hope you don't mind that I didn't stick around for that tongue-lashing. You'll probably have worked it out on your own, but I've joined a guild. We've got work right now, but after that, I'll be coming back, at least for a little while. You should already know this, but I'll tell you anyway-just because I've joined a guild doesn't mean I've given up my loyalty to you and Estellise. Watch the stars with me tonight. They should be especially beautiful after all that's happened._

That night, Fionn left the safety of the city behind for a deserted hill where he could sit alone and gaze up at the heavens. He opened up to the stars, said to them everything he'd wanted to say to Vesperia: how stupid it was for him to have bet his life the way he had; how proud Fionn was to have been given that trust; how foolish it had been to join a guild with tensions between the Union and the Empire higher than ever; how angry he was that Vesperia had run away from him, not once, but twice; and how much he missed him. He told the stars all that he wouldn't be able to say to Vesperia, all the things that Vesperia would already know he wanted to say because he was Fionn's other half and they knew each other as well as they knew themselves.

* * *

More than half a year later, Vesperia finally made good on his word. The incident in Dahngrest had seen Fionn promoted to captain. He was overseeing his brigade as they ran through drills in the practice yard one day when Vesperia came strolling over from the direction of the palace, casual as you please, Repede at his side. He leaned against the wooden fence, just within arm's reach.

"Happy birthday," he said.

"You're a day late."

"I got you a really nice gift to make up for it."

"And what about the other two you missed?" Turning to offer a smile and settle a hand on his shoulder, Fionn caught surprise in Vesperia's widening eyes before his friend hurriedly cast his gaze back out over the field.

He ignored the question. "You look good."

"You just saw me half a year ago."

"Didn't have the captain's uniform then. It suits you."

"Join the Knights with me," he said impulsively. "I know it's a bit late, but—"

"They aren't going to let me in, Fionn. Besides, I've found a different path for myself."

"What reason could they have to keep you out? I'll vouch for you, myself. Estellise has mostly taken over for her mother. She could—"

"I won't have other people fighting battles for me. I'm going to go let her know I'm back. Unless…." He eyed the sword at Fionn's side almost hungrily, and Fionn felt the familiar swelling of anticipation before a good fight. It had been three years since they had crossed swords. Far too long.

"By all means."

They entered the training field together, shoulder to shoulder as they strolled past Fionn's brigade, and it was a challenge to seem unhurried when all he wanted to do was race out to the far, empty corner and begin. Vesperia tapped his sheathed sword against his shoulder, eagerness in the motion, one of his tells that meant he was just as impatient as Fionn. Finally, they were far enough away that all else would cease to be a distraction, not that Fionn felt anything short of a national emergency could pull his focus away. They drew their swords simultaneously, and Vesperia cast his sheath carelessly aside as they touched blades.

"I've gotten stronger," Fionn cautioned, grinning.

"Show me."

There was a moment of absolute stillness between them, and then they were in furious motion, blades crashing together and sweeping back as they struck and dodged and parried. If Fionn had gotten stronger, Vesperia had grown swifter. There used to be more time to anticipate him, a longer interval between his tell and his motion that, while infinitesimally shorter, made Fionn feel like he was fighting his old friend on instinct alone. He knew where his sword needed to be, knew when to guard and when to fall back, but he constantly seemed to be there only just barely ahead of Vesperia. It felt as if the slightest hesitation could turn the tide and lose him the fight.

Vesperia's offense was ferocious and unrelenting, but Fionn had spent a few years learning how to take on multiple enemies all at once and his defense was up to the challenge. He struck out when he could, parried, blocked, watched, and waited. Vesperia was good, but he had always been in such a hurry, always prone to some small bit of carelessness in exchange for one more shot at his opponent. When Fionn saw his chance, he took it. A fierce thrust threw Vesperia off balance and gave Fionn the breathing room he needed. He kept up the attack, slower than Vesperia but more purposeful, lacking any unnecessary movement. Vesperia was holding his own, but he wouldn't be able to keep it up. He'd improved, he'd learned some new tricks, but he still left himself open in too many small ways. All Fionn needed was a wide enough gap in his defenses.

"_Vesperia_!"

Estellise's clear voice carried over the field, bringing the match to an immediate halt. She let herself into the field, passing by rows of knights—knights that Fionn was only just realizing had stopped their own practice to watch him. Fionn saluted her as she drew near, protocol overriding familiarity, but the princess forewent the usual scolding in favor of throwing herself into her brother's arms.

"You're finally home! I missed you so much!" She pulled back and was almost able to frown at him. "How could you come back and not tell me right away?"

"Sorry." He ruffled her hair and glanced at Fionn, a crooked smile on his face. "I couldn't resist."

"All you ever think about is fighting! Tell me where you've been. You never said in your letters. You must have met so many people! What was it like out there?" She dragged him off toward the palace, and Vesperia could only shrug helplessly at Fionn. They would have to finish their match another day.

That other day proved to be a good while in coming. It was rare that Fionn found time off from his duties, and when he did, Vesperia always seemed to be either missing or seeing to his sister's education in the art of the sword during what precious little time she had between her official lessons and various social engagements. The three of them would stargaze together when they could, but that was a quiet time, a time for soft conversation and companionship, not duels. Vesperia walked his sister back to her chambers on those nights and, as much as Fionn had missed having all three of them together, he couldn't help feeling that one of them was a third wheel. There was something strange among them and he wasn't sure if it was due to having been so long apart or simply of having grown up.

One evening, nearly a week after Vesperia had returned, Fionn was preparing for bed when he heard a knock at his window. Being three stories up, he wasn't sure at first what had caused it, but when he went to look, there was Vesperia, grinning ear to ear as he clung to the stone of the palace wall.

"This is a lot easier when there's a tree," he said as Fionn hurriedly pulled him inside.

"What were you thinking? What if you had fallen?"

"Too late to worry about that." He showed himself into the small set of apartments, looking around curiously even though he'd lived all his life in the palace and must have seen rooms just the same countless times before. "Very nice. Coming up in the world."

"I haven't forgotten my roots."

He indicated the wall above his desk where he had mounted the swords he'd trained with as a boy: the wooden one for learning the basics, the blunted steel blade for practice, and his first real sword, notched and gleaming, retired now from slaying monsters. Vesperia looked upon them with approval.

"I'll have to make you a gift of the one you used against the bee."

"You still have it?"

"Of course." He turned away from the desk and smiled. "You haven't asked me about the guilds."

"I assumed you wouldn't want to talk about them to an imperial captain. You were protecting people—in your letters. That's why you never mentioned any names, never told us exactly where we could find you. Did you really think I might use a personal correspondence from you to further the goals of the Empire?"

He hadn't realized how angry he'd been over that suspicion until he voiced it. He had thought Vesperia knew him better than that. He'd thought they'd trusted each other.

His concerns were brushed away with a light smack to the back of his head. "Don't be ridiculous. You of all people should know that letters can be intercepted." He sat down sideways in one of the wingback chairs in front of the cold fireplace. "Ring for some snacks, and I'll tell you all about it. I got to know the Don pretty well. He likes you."

That night, and for many more afterward, Vesperia and Fionn passed hours talking and telling stories about what they'd done during their years apart. More often than not, Vesperia fell asleep wherever he happened to be sitting, and Fionn would be subjected to his complaints of a stiff neck or shoulders the next morning. It felt like he'd gone back to his childhood when Vesperia would flee the palace to spend the night with him in his tiny, cramped room. They used to tell stories by candlelight back then too, or talk about how great it would be once they became knights together, or wrestle until Fionn's father would come in and order both of them to go to sleep. Vesperia still had no qualms about pulling him into a wrestling match, but he was quicker to give up and back off than Fionn remembered. He joked sometimes about getting too old for roughhousing and Fionn would always laugh at that, thinking it would be a long day in coming that Vesperia was too old for a fight.

The days passed easily one into the next. With the Empire and the Union both having laid down their weapons in favor of talk, peace had come surprisingly quickly, although murmurs of dissent remained inescapable. For his part, Fionn was on top of the world. He was a well-respected captain despite his humble background. His men were hardworking, courageous, and loyal. His best friend was home again after three long years abroad, and his relationship with Princess Estellise…that had progressed well past a simple childhood friendship.

He soon found that his courtship of the princess was an open secret, and not so much looked down upon as he had feared. His deeds as a knight had brought him renown and acceptance, and he suddenly found himself on the receiving end of social invitations from people probably more interested in his relationship with the princess than in himself. Wherever he went inside the palace, he was greeted and welcomed, though it still didn't really feel like home. Sometimes though, when he looked at Estellise and she smiled just for him, he wondered if it might feel like home someday soon. Though Estellise's suitors had included personages up to and including the Commandant himself, Fionn was the one she had chosen. Her mother had already given her approval of the match, and everything seemed to be going well as far as convincing the Council. There was only one other person whose blessing Fionn wanted….

He'd been watching Vesperia for a long time. Currently, his friend was practicing sword drills on his own, but Fionn could remember seeing him battling dummies he'd pieced together from pilfered supplies, back before anyone at the palace had been willing to let him learn to fight. He had come a long way over the years, and proven his loyalty to his adoptive family—and to Fionn—time and time again.

Fionn folded his arms over a low branch and rested his chin there, studying Vesperia's movements, admiring his grace and the way he could so seamlessly switch between attack and defense, the way he changed his weapon from blade to pommel to fist to foot without missing a beat. He had altered so many of the standard attacks to fit his style: wild and relentless and not a little rough around the edges for all his skill.

A succession of advancing strikes brought him close enough that the hanging branches of the tree Fionn stood beneath appeared to leave him crowned with flowers. The image brought a smile to Fionn's face, and he ducked beneath the branch to meet his friend as Vesperia sheathed his sword and came to join him.

"Where are you from, Vesperia?"

He asked it knowing Vesperia couldn't provide an answer, but it wasn't a question he could leave unasked for any length of time. It was a question that nearly always arose along with thoughts of his old friend and filled his mind, leaving him preoccupied and restless. He asked because he needed to ask, needed to know.

"Why are you so fixated on that?"

"I want to understand you."

The tiny smile Vesperia offered didn't reach his eyes and lent him an air of wistfulness. "You understand me well enough already."

"Aren't you curious at all?"

"Maybe once I was. Not anymore. It's all right, Fionn. Let it go."

He did because he was used to being told as much, and because he hadn't sought Vesperia out to ask him about his past, but to talk to him about the future. As they walked the palace grounds, he found that he wasn't sure where to start. Although Vesperia knew about his courtship of Estellise, it wasn't something the two of them had ever discussed. Early on, it had been because Fionn was grateful to avoid the embarrassment and teasing he'd received over his love struck clumsiness, but that had been years ago and, without quite realizing it, he had never properly broached the subject with Vesperia. Now, they were set to become brothers-in-law sometime in the near future and, while he could think of no reason for Vesperia not to be thrilled for the both of them, something made him hesitate.

As usual when they walked together, their steps took them to the hedge maze, through turns as familiar as the streets they'd played in as children, directly to the old gravel courtyard, now so much smaller than it had seemed the first time Vesperia had brought him there. Wordlessly, they drew their swords. Smiling, they fought and, in fighting, Fionn forgot why he had come to find his dearest friend in the first place.

* * *

The Adephagos came without warning, descending upon their world and stripping half of it bare in a day. Weapons were useless against it, and magic alone did no good. It was a strange gathering that came up with a solution. Information pooled from the imperial princess, a young mage, an imperial captain and spy, and a traveling Krityan suggested that there might be a way to place a seal on the Adephagos, trapping it outside of reality. To do so, they would need a member of the royal family, the remaining magic of the dying moon, and the mystical sword Dein Nomos which linked the two. A spell was written which would require immense power and multiple casters. Rita and Raven—the mage and the spy—along with Fionn would help control and guide the flow of magic collected by Dein Nomos. It would be Estellise's job to take the magic in and wield it against the Adephagos. Judith—the Kriytan—and Vesperia were charged with protecting the working from the servants of the Adephagos. It was not a plan that could save their world, but it was a plan that could keep other worlds from meeting the same fate.

They began the spell immediately. Every hour, the planet was growing weaker as the Adephagos siphoned the life out of it. As Fionn guided the magic summoned up by Dein Nomos into Estellise, he could hear Vesperia fighting behind him, but he had no attention to spare. Had it really been only that morning that Vesperia had sought him out to challenge him over his engagement to Estellise? Perhaps, if they had some time left after the Adephagos had been sealed away, he might ask why Vesperia had lied to him about giving his blessing to the marriage. A marriage that now was never going to happen….

He heard a noise behind him, a noise he had heard before. It was the last sound he'd ever heard several of the knights under his command make, and he was hearing it now from his best friend. He turned, unable to stop himself from looking, and saw Vesperia smiling at him, a trickle of blood running from the corner of his mouth. He had been run through by the tail of one of the servants of the Adephagos. More of the monsters were closing in on him. He was nothing but food to them, and Fionn was reaching for him, turning to leave the spell circle, but Estellise screamed and the magic flared.

The last thing Fionn saw as the world was flooded with a brilliant white light was that sad, pained smile on Vesperia's face.


	10. Conjunction

A/N: The very first bit of this story that I wrote was the scene in Estelle's room. _That is where all of this nonsense came from._

Disclaimer: The characters in this story are from _Tales of Vesperia_ and do not belong to me.

* * *

Flynn sat bolt upright, gasping, fingers curled around the hilt of a sword that wasn't there. He looked around his darkened living room as his breathing calmed. He was on his couch. That was a good sign. He could remember now having let Karol sleep in his bed. When he pinched his arm, it hurt. Even better. He really was awake.

Images from his dreams flooded his mind, one after the other, no matter how hard he tried to dismiss them. They felt incredibly real, but real in the way that news footage was real, something he had watched, but not lived through.

He stood up shakily and fumbled for his phone. He needed to talk to Yuri.

Incredibly, he got through. Yuri didn't normally answer while he was off being secretive, but the call was picked up after the third ring.

"Yuri?"

"Wrong."

The voice on the other end was female, and Flynn nearly dropped the phone. He knew he hadn't misdialed.

"Who is this? Where's Yuri?"

"He's unavailable. Get up to Estelle's penthouse, now. Oh, and we're gonna need Fionn for this—" Her voice became suddenly muffled, as if she'd lowered the phone or turned her face away. "We don't have time for you to insist on trying to protect him! We need someone to fight in Vesperia's place!"

Anxiety twisted Flynn's stomach into knots. Why was this girl who had Yuri's phone talking about one of the people from his dream? Worse, what could have happened to him that would have been terrible enough to keep him from fighting? Flynn could hear the casing of his phone creak under the pressure of his grip. In his mind, he couldn't separate Yuri from the bloodied and dying figure of Vesperia from the end of his dream.

The girl's voice returned, speaking low and in a rush. "We need Fionn, not Flynn. If you can't manage that, then don't bother coming." With that, the call went dead.

There was no conceivable way he could ignore her orders. He was halfway out the door when he remembered that Karol was tucked into his bed and turned back, just long enough to jot down a quick note telling him to stay put. He raced to the elevator bay, jabbing impatiently at the up button until the car with penthouse access opened up for him. He had to buzz Estelle's apartment before the elevator would actually take him up, and he barely resisted pacing during the interminable ride to the top.

On Estelle's floor, the door to her apartment opened before he could knock, revealing the brown-haired girl he'd seen hanging around Yuri and his other new friends. He recognized her from the dream. Her name was Rita.

"Where—?"

"They're in the bedroom. Don't startle Estellise."

Young as she looked, particularly in the bizarre, mismatched outfit she wore, her aquamarine eyes were hard as she stared him down. Flynn heeded her instructions and walked quickly but quietly down the hall to Estelle's room.

The door was standing open, and he paused just inside to take in the scene before him. Stretched out on the bed, dressed in the same black outfit and red scarf he had been wearing when he'd showed up on the fire escape hours ago, was Yuri. He was pale and unnaturally still. He had never been a composed sleeper; dozens of childhood sleepovers were evidence of that. The only time Flynn had ever seen him so motionless in his sleep had been during Yuri's hospital stay after the car accident that had killed his parents.

Someone was kneeling next to the bed, but Flynn barely saw them. He had eyes only for Yuri, and his breath caught in his throat as he willed him to move: to roll over, throw out an arm, take a deep breath—anything! He was so still, so terribly still, and there were splashes of deep, dark red on the sheets around him that Flynn couldn't allow himself to think about. His coat was torn over his stomach, the edges of the fabric sagged, damp and glistening. The smell of blood turned Flynn's stomach and Vesperia's face swam before his eyes, devastatingly similar to Yuri's.

Rita shoved past him into the room, forcing him to brace himself one-handed against the doorframe. It helped ground him in the present, and he swallowed back the memory and his fears as best he could. A flash of green light caught his eye, and he turned to the corner of the room where Rita had taken a seat on the floor, her back to the others. Before her, floating in midair, was a shining display of light shaped into a language Flynn had never seen before, not in his current lifetime, at least. He looked away as some of the words began making sense to him, too overwhelmed already with everything that was happening.

The third person in the room still knelt beside the bed, undisturbed by their presence. Her hands were extended over Yuri and radiating a soft light. He thought at first it was Estelle, but her hair was styled differently, and Estelle wasn't the type to be wearing armor. The longer he looked, however, the more he recognized the girl at the bedside. He knew her, and he stepped forward, one hand outstretched.

"Estellise."

For just a moment, Fionn's memories had overlapped with Flynn's, and he hadn't been sure if he was seeing Estelle the college student or Estellise the princess. He didn't even realize he'd called her by that name until he saw her flinch. She glanced back over her shoulder and offered him a tiny smile that held only an echo of her usual cheerfulness.

"You remember now, don't you?" she asked softly.

As she pulled her hands away from Yuri, the light faded, and his face contorted in pain. Flynn took an involuntary step forward. He still didn't completely understand everything, but he could see that whatever Estelle had been doing had been helping Yuri. He didn't want her stopping even in order to explain, not until Yuri was no longer hurting.

"It's all right, Flynn. I won't leave him injured. You can help."

"I can't." He didn't understand, didn't know how. He couldn't look away from Yuri, from the blood that he suddenly saw everywhere: skin, shirt, bed sheets. When Estelle thrust her hand forward to offer him a small, golden disk, he could see that the blood was on her hands, too, dark and vivid. Hesitantly, he reached out to take the disk. It felt familiar.

"It's your blastia. The cuff Vesperia—_Yuri_—is wearing is his. They enable us to assume the guises and abilities of our former lives."

He met her eyes. "This will allow me to help Yuri?"

Her smile grew and warmed. "Yes. Put it on and state your title. When you change, there will be a memory—"

Flynn didn't wait for her to finish explaining. He knew where the blastia went, and clipped it over the center of his chest. The title came to him easily, as well. It was something he'd earned through hard work and discipline. Something he'd been proud of beyond measure.

"Bearer of Chivalry, I am Captain Fionn."

"_Hey, Captain! I hear you got yourself engaged to my sister."_

_He turned to see Vesperia approaching down the garden path, sword in hand as always, lips twisted in a smirk._

"_Come to offer congratulations?"_

_Vesperia drew his blade, tossing the sheath carelessly away. "Maybe if you defeat me."_

"_Seeing as I don't recall ever having lost to you, I'll take that to mean your blessing of the match is assured."_

"_I wasn't kidding." Raising his sword, he took a step closer._

"_You can't honestly want to fight me over this."_

_Even as he said it, he knew the truth. Vesperia was deadly serious about the duel. It was apparent in the glint in his eyes, in the way he held himself so very still. He always went still just before a match, his composure completely at odds with the whirlwind of force and grace that he became during a fight._

_There was nothing for it but to give in and accept the challenge._

_He hadn't expected Vesperia to be so against the engagement, but his feelings shone though in the way he fought. He was angry and unsettled, and that translated to aggressive, unfocused attacks. Finding an opening was difficult, not only because he was normally quite skilled, but because once he got started striking out and dealing blows, he didn't let up. It took patience and a careful eye to spot the coming pause, the second Vesperia would need to adjust his grip or shuffle forward. Once that chance presented itself, the match was as good as over._

_Stun him, press forward with a flurry of slashes, dodge or block the wild counterattack, keep him unsteady because mobility was one of his greatest strengths, knock him off his feet and…._

"_It seems I win again." Fionn quickly moved his blade from where it had been aimed over Vesperia's heart and reached down, offering a hand. "Are you all right?"_

_The smile Vesperia forced onto his face was huge and as false an expression as he'd ever worn. Granted, it wasn't the sort of thing that would be noticeable to anyone who didn't know him well, but after years of friendship and rivalry, to see him make that face while offering congratulations on the engagement was like a slap in the face. Fionn let him walk away after that, too stunned to do anything else._

_They never spoke about it. They never had the opportunity._

Estelle was supporting him when he came back to the present. Shaking his head, he backed away.

"I'm sorry. I tried to warn you. The memories can be very strong when we transform." She looked him up and down approvingly. "The uniform still suits you."

He was dressed in blue and white with milky armor over his arms and legs. Eight smaller golden rounds surrounded the blastia on his chest. A scabbard was hung from the wide belt cinched at his waist, and he drew his sword, recognizing the way it fit in his hand and the weight of it as he made a practice swing.

"You won't need that to help Yuri."

The gentle reminder nearly caused him to drop the sword. Yuri was badly injured. How could he have forgotten that?

Focusing once more on his friend, Flynn knelt beside the bed the way Estelle had. He felt a flash of bitterness over Yuri's disapproval and his lies, and he rubbed a hand over his face, trying to distinguish between feelings from that surge of memory and his own real anger over the fact that Yuri had hidden so much from him. Flynn had some answers now, and he would get more soon. First, though, they needed to help Yuri.

Estelle joined him next to the bed. "We're going to cast a healing spell. Hold out your hands over him and repeat after me."

Following her instructions, Flynn soon found the same soothing light coming from him and easing Yuri's pain. Pleased with himself and very much relieved that it was working, he smiled a little, relaxing as Yuri did.

For a few minutes, everything was quiet. Flynn found that continuing the spell took a great deal of his concentration, so he was unable to think back over everything he had learned in such a short time. He watched Yuri, instead, seeing the color come back to his face, hearing his breathing ease and become deeper. Through the magic, he could feel how badly Yuri had been hurt and how much of the damage the spell was reversing. They were almost finished when Estelle spoke up.

"The three of us are finally together again."

There had been something strange in her voice and, when Flynn looked over at her, he saw how her smile trembled. She blinked and a tear escaped, trickling down her cheek. With that, her composure shattered and she curled into herself, crying. Flynn, the healing spell already slipping away from him, pulled her close and held her, knowing that these weren't tears of happiness. Not sure what to say, he simply stroked her hair and let her cling to his tunic.

"'Together again,'" Yuri echoed.

Estelle gasped and looked up at him, wiping her eyes, her smile faltering but genuine.

Wincing, Yuri sat up on the bed, pressing a hand over his ribs. "If you two don't mind postponing the wedding just a little longer, we sort of have a world-devouring monster to deal with."

"It's about time you woke up." Rita dismissed her glowing display with a careless wave as Yuri got to his feet and snatched up a sword lying nearby.

"You try getting shishkabobbed by that thing and see how long it takes you to recover." He shivered and headed for the door.

"Yuri, wait."

Pausing only long enough to help Estelle up, Flynn hurried to keep him from leaving. He'd just been laid out by an awful injury. It was almost unbelievable that he would be on his feet so quickly, never mind trying to run off to save the world. Surprisingly, it wasn't Yuri who objected to being stopped.

"Flynn, he's right. We have to go."

Incredulous, he looked back at Estelle. She was standing beside Rita, more serious than he'd ever seen her. Like Yuri, she held a sword. Flynn had no doubt that she knew how to use it.

"You remember the Adephagos, don't you? You remember what it did to our world. It's come back. We cannot let the past repeat itself. I won't ask you to fight—"

"I'm going."

Yuri laughed, catching Flynn's attention. His eyes glittered, and there was a challenge when he spoke. "You remember how to fight?"

"I won't just sit by while you shoulder this. Either of you," he added, looking back at Estelle.

"Same old Fionn."

"Knock it off, Yuri. It's creepy to hear you call me that."

He'd expected some sort of snarky comeback. Instead, Yuri just stared at him, surprised, then turned away and walked out of the room. Estelle came forward to lay a hand on his arm.

"When we take on these personas, we use their names. It helps if we can put some distance between them and us. For Yuri, especially…."

Though he still didn't like it, he nodded his understanding and let her lead them out to the spacious living room. Floor to ceiling glass windows provided a view of the terrace and the city beyond. Yuri…Vesperia…was already hurrying through the door leading onto the terrace, and Flynn couldn't tell if he was eager to get back to whatever fight had nearly done him in, or eager to get away from the confrontation he had to know was brewing between them. To have been keeping a secret like this, when Flynn should have been involved from the start, when he could have been there to help, maybe to keep Yuri from being so badly injured…!

"What did I miss while I was out?"

He wasn't looking at any of them as they spilled out into the night. Instead, his face was turned up toward the moon and the awful thing that was wrapped around it. Flynn stopped in his tracks, unable to move faced with what he saw in the sky. He knew the nature of the monster engulfing the moon and he feared it. It had no care for life or death, no regard for pain or fear of anything that might be greater than itself. It was nothing but an appetite fit to devour worlds and it had come in search of a feast.

The city hadn't failed to take notice of it, either. How could they? Flynn could hear shouts and screams, horns and sirens. The sudden cacophony of cars colliding reached them, and he saw Yuri flinch. He wanted to go stand by his side, but he couldn't, not after all the lies and not when Yuri was trying so hard to be strong in the face of a foe too horrible to be believed.

The noise of a panicking city rose up and reached them, but remained muffled by distance. Shouting voices were indistinct, unintelligible. The sounds blended into a strange sort of white noise, an aural fog that blanketed the city. Though she spoke softly, Estelle had no trouble making her voice heard.

"Alexei's spell was very complex, and it took Rita time to be able to shut it down. In the meantime, more of the Servants of the Adephagos came through. We fought, but…some of them got loose into the city."

Yuri made a move as if he was going to go running off—and maybe he was, Flynn thought, remembering how he'd leapt so easily from the fire escape—but Rita shoved forward and spoke up.

"Don't even try it, you idiot. Did you really think we'd let them run loose? Judith, Repede, and the old man have been tracking them down ever since we brought you back here. They've all ganged up on the last one."

"All right," there was a cautious optimism in Yuri's voice. "So, what's the bad news?"

Rita's shimmering display appeared suddenly before her, though only Estelle leaned close to look. Flynn didn't like how the symbols kept slipping into recognizable words, and Yuri had eyes only for the creature eclipsing the moon.

"The Adephagos was using the spell Alexei cobbled together as a conduit to get its servants here. Just because it's big, doesn't mean the laws of time and space don't apply. It can't get here immediately, and to do so at all, it's going to need food. It's still partially locked away, and it isn't strong enough to pull itself all the way into our reality just yet. Those things it sent were extensions of itself. They would have gobbled up whatever they could get and returned that energy to the main body."

"Then it's trapped up there?" That was too good to be true.

"Only temporarily. It's going to pull itself out, even if it has to eat the moon to get the power to do so."

"Pretty big jawbreaker," Yuri muttered. He must have been feeling better, to be able to joke.

"It isn't funny, stupid! To stop the Adephagos, we have to shove the ugly thing back into the hole it's trying to crawl out of and close the universe up after it. And to do that…we're going to have to reactivate Alexei's spell."

Yuri whirled on her. "Absolutely not. That spell is what was bringing it through in the first place! It was using Estellise like a battery."

"Don't you think I know that? I've already been through a hundred other ideas! If there was _anything_ else we could do, if I thought I could put together something in time _myself_—"

"Rita, it's okay." Estelle calmed her with a touch and moved between her and Yuri. "This is the way it has to be. We discussed it while you were unconscious. In order to seal the Adephagos, we need the power of Dein Nomos and a Child of the Full Moon. Alexei's spell was already set up to incorporate both."

"I've been studying it," Rita put in. "I can make it work."

"You want us to patch Estellise back into that thing?"

"I don't want to, but we have no other choice!"

Sick of being left out, Flynn stepped forward. "How dangerous is this?"

Rita eyed him askance and said: "Extremely," at the same time Estelle said: "Not very."

"I think we need to discuss our strategy."

"This is the strategy, _Fionn_. Just because you were a captain, don't think you can order me around! I'm the mage here, and I'm the one who knows what's going on when it comes to magic. The only way we are going to push that thing out of our world is by recreating the spell that sealed it away in the first place."

He met her stare evenly. "That seal drained Princess Estellise's life energy. It took all she had to complete it."

It was Rita who looked away. "That's why I didn't want her doing it," she muttered.

"It'll be all right," Estelle said. "When we first cast the seal, we were fighting to push the Adephagos entirely out of this world, and it was already strong. It's grown weak over time, and it isn't even fully free. We can do this." She took Rita's hands in hers. "I believe in you. You can make it work. And everyone else will be there to support me."

"I don't have any magic," Yuri said. His hand drifted up over his chest and Flynn saw once again Vesperia sagging, speared by a monster that had snuck up behind Fionn. He clenched his fist as Yuri seemed to realize what he was doing and let his hand fall quickly to his side.

"We'll need you and Judith for defense anyway," Rita said. "Once I get the spell going again, it'll be a two-way conduit. More of those servants might come out. I think we can still seal up the Adephagos if one or two of them are free on this side, but you'll have to protect us and keep them out of the city."

Yuri nodded. His sword rattled a little as he clenched his fist around it.

It was a bad idea. Flynn could feel it in his bones. What was that old saying about the definition of insanity? That it was doing the same thing over and expecting different results. Yuri was still pale. Estelle had just used up who knew how much of her power to heal him, Judith was expected to be the only other backup, and she was apparently already off fighting and wearing down her strength. There was too much that could go wrong.

"I don't think this is—"

He was interrupted by the chime of a phone.

"Hold that thought," Rita said. She checked the text she'd just gotten and sent back a response. "They're finished with it. I told them to meet us at the tower."

"Wait! There must be some other way."

"We're doing this with or without you." Yuri's voice was colder than Flynn had ever heard it, and hard with determination that would not be reasoned with. "Estellise has found the resolve to do what's necessary to protect this world. I plan to stand by her until the end."

"I know you don't like it," Estelle said gently, "but it really is the only way. I'm not asking anything of you that you aren't willing to do."

She stood tall and confidant, her unearthly armor softly gleaming. She was every inch the princess Flynn had seen in his dreams, and he almost lost sight of his friend Estelle beneath it all. He went with them when they went out into the city. What other choice did he have?

* * *

On the very top of Zaude Tower, Flynn was politely introduced to Raven and Judith, thinking it a bizarre and almost out of place bit of normality as they shook hands. The moon hung low and heavy above them, as if the weight of the monster curled around it was dragging it closer to Earth.

While Rita began her preparations to activate the spell, Estelle took charge of explaining the plan to Raven and Judith. They both had their doubts. Everyone on that rooftop remembered what had happened last time. Yuri had slipped away from the group. He was kneeling beside one of the building's vents, petting Repede and talking quietly to the dog. He paused every now and again and looked for all the world as if he was actually having a conversation. Maybe he was. Flynn drifted away from the others to join him.

Yuri didn't acknowledge him, but that wasn't much of a surprise. He got moody when he knew he'd been in the wrong. This was probably the worst thing he'd ever done, though. They'd been best friends for as long as Flynn could remember. They were supposed to trust each other. He watched Yuri and Repede as they held their private conversation until he couldn't stand being ignored any longer.

"Can you understand him?"

Yuri met his eyes. He must not have liked what he saw there because he quickly looked away again.

"Sort of. It's easier when I'm like this, but when he wants me to know something, he makes himself clear."

"Is he the one who first told you about the past? You started changing right around the time you adopted him."

"It's…complicated. He made it easier to figure things out."

"Must be nice, having a friend who'll clue you in." Yuri didn't respond, didn't even seem to flinch, though it was difficult to tell with that damned scarf covering half his face. "You must have had a reason. Aren't you even going to try to defend yourself?"

"No." He looked up again, finally willing to face Flynn. "When this fight is over, I'll ask for your forgiveness, but I'm not going to beg. I made my choices. I'll live with the consequences."

"Yuri—!"

"Hey!" Rita waved them over. "Let's get moving! Some of us would like to get to bed before dawn!"

Carefully dusting himself off, Yuri stood up and went to join them, Repede at his side. Flynn let it go, because it wasn't the time to argue. All he had was the hope that the past wouldn't repeat itself and that they'd have another chance.

Rita arranged everyone with brusque commands. She, Raven, and Flynn were stationed around the antenna that rose from the roof. The men were directly across from each other. Dein Nomos was opposite Rita, standing straight up where its point had been sunk into the concrete. Estelle stood at the base of the antenna. She looked calm, but her hands were clasped tightly over her chest. Yuri, Repede, and Judith were instructed to keep well back.

"All right, listen. Here's how it's going to work: I'm going to activate Alexei's spell, and it's going to recognize the four of us and Dein Nomos. We'll be locked into the working. We need to pull power from the sword and feed it slowly to Estellise. Her job is to use all that magic to force the Adephagos back through the rift and seal it off. You three stay back until things start coming through the conduit. At that point, you won't be able to disrupt the spell, anyway. Keep in mind, we can't keep this going for long or it'll take too big a toll on Estellise. Understood?"

"How big a toll?" Flynn asked.

Rita glared. "Do you know what the difference is between magic and life energy?"

"No."

"Neither does the spell, after a point. We just have to be quick, and everything will be fine. Everybody ready?"

She waited a moment, maybe hoping that someone would have come up with an alternative, then slashed her hand over her display and the rooftop around the antenna was suddenly awash with bright, red light. The force of the sudden flare of magic was enough to send Flynn's cape flapping out as if caught by a strong breeze. He could feel the power surging around him, seeping through his skin, slipping in with every breath he took. It filled him up until he burned with it. He had to do something with it before it blew him apart.

"Pass it on to Estellise, you idiot!" Rita's hands flew furiously over her display. "I'm trying to moderate how much is pulled from Dein Nomos, but it won't do any good if you don't let go!"

He looked to Estelle and saw her reaching toward the heaven amid a blinding pillar of light. Reaching out to her, he could feel the magic building within himself straining, spilling down his arm. She was drawing it all to her, and all he had to do was channel the energy, let it eke away some of his own to make it easier on her.

Flynn stopped fighting against the intrusion of the spell, and the magic leapt from him. Estelle couldn't quite hold back a small scream as it hit her, but she never wavered. She gathered everything coming her way and sent it straight up and slowly, a tentacle as big as a mountain range let go its hold on the moon and disappeared back into the void it had emerged from.

* * *

Repede barked a warning of things to come, and Vesperia spotted the servant of the Adephagos as it forced its way through the pillar of magic. He took a deep breath, grinning unpleasantly at the little shocks of pain remaining from his last encounter with the things. He wasn't going to fall for that trick again.

The monster slipped entirely out of the magic and skimmed down the side of the pillar. Vesperia rushed forward to meet it, determined not to let it harm one hair on Estellise's head, but it didn't seem to notice her at all. Maybe she was of no interest while imbedded in the spell. Either way, it went straight for Vesperia and was met with an unpleasant surprise.

"Pyre Havoc!"

Fire sprang forth, blazing along his sword and leaving trails in the air as he attacked. The ghostly creature reared and was knocked back, leaving itself exposed. Vesperia sliced it to ribbons, beginning with the tail, too quick for it to pull itself together again before he thrust his sword up into the strange core in its body. It shuddered as it faded away, but made no sound, and he smiled grimly as he stood up.

"That's the best place to hit them," Judith called. She had her eye on another one that was starting its descent. "Rita thinks it's what connects them to the Adephagos." She launched herself into the air, power gathering around her spear. Her target never made it anywhere near the roof. Her landing was perfectly graceful, and she took a little bow as Vesperia clapped.

"I'd tip my hat to you if I still had it."

"We'll check the fairgrounds when we're done here."

Growling, Repede charged around to the other side of the antenna. One of the servants had slipped out where they couldn't see it. Good thing Repede's senses were stronger than theirs. Vesperia and Judith traded looks as more and more dark forms budded from the pillar of magic.

"Guess it's not the time to be playing around," she said with a smile.

"Bet I get more of them than you."

"You're on."

He lost count after the fourth one. They were coming through too quickly to concentrate on anything aside from hacking them to pieces and dodging strikes. Something about the spell seemed to be shielding the others, but every now and again, one of the servants would notice that there were a handful of defenseless targets, and then Vesperia would have to race to finish off the monster he was fighting or even simply run away to protect his friends. He wasn't used to splitting his focus that way. Everyone had always been able to manage perfectly well on their own when they could fight, but now that they had a job to do, Vesperia couldn't only focus on the opponent in front of him. He took hits from attacks that should have missed him by a mile because he kept looking over his shoulder. Having started off still recovering from an injury that probably should have killed him, the fight began to take its toll on him much sooner than usual. He was tapping into reserves he didn't know he had, forcing himself to keep going because he couldn't save the world from what Alexei had unleashed. All he could do was protect those who could.

Azure Edge, Wolf Strike, Frigid Blast…he used every arte he knew and still the Adephagos sent its servants through in a desperate attempt to gather the strength it needed to fight back. Vesperia only knew the spell was working by Rita's shouted encouragements. He felt as if weights had been strapped to his arms and legs. Blood flowed freely over and between his fingers, visible in the rips in his gloves from where he'd punched through core after core. He couldn't guess at how many of the things he'd destroyed with fist or sword or the heel of his boot and still he kept fighting. He pressed himself, sought for that bottomless well of energy that fueled Vesperia, and fought on out of sheer stubbornness when he found that the persona he wore had nothing else to give. The world was reduced to the monsters and the unconditional need to wipe them all out of existence.

Rita's voice broke through the trance he was falling into, and the dismay there pulled his attention back to the spell circle. He cursed himself, nearly tripping over his own two feet in his rush to turn, to get back to the others who had been relying on him for protection. He stumbled, counting his friends, searching for the cause of Rita's alarm and seeing nothing wrong with any of them. Then, he looked up.

Up close, its flesh was the dark red of drying blood, smoky and translucent and utterly, horribly alien. It was something that had no place in a safe, sane world. It was a nightmare created to devour all the good dreams and, after that, all the dreamers. The Adephagos wasn't going back into its prison without a fight. It had forced a piece of itself through the conduit.

"We have to get rid of it!" Rita screamed. "Estellise can't complete the seal with part of it still out here!"

Judith was in the air in the space of a thought, her spear a blur of cold steel and crackling energies. It passed through the Adephagos' flesh as if it was no more than air, and did just as much damage. The tentacle pushed a little further through and Estellise crumpled to her knees.

"Please…hurry…!" Sweat poured down her face and her arms were shaking uncontrollably.

While Repede did his best to keep the servants at bay, Vesperia and Judith concentrated as much of their attacks as they could on the Adephagos. Hits from their weapons did no good at all, and the energy of their artes only barely made it flinch. Working together, they were able to hold it at bay, but they weren't gaining any ground. They were tiny things compared to the vastness of the Adephagos, and they were worn down. One final attack had them at their limit. Judith was down on one knee. Vesperia had to use his sword as a prop to stay on his feet.

"Not sure we're…strong enough…to beat this thing." Judith was gasping for breath, glaring defiance at the undulating mass of flesh.

"Can't let it end here. Can you handle the small fry? Gonna hit it with everything I've got."

She nodded and drew a deep, steadying breath. When she stood, she swayed a little, but Judith was a warrior to the bone, and she strode toward the remaining servants like crushing them beneath her heels would be the easiest thing in the world.

Vesperia rested a hand over his blastia. If magic and life energy weren't that different, than artes couldn't be far behind. He had plenty of energy to feed into one last arte, something he'd learned with Fionn in that last year they'd had together. They'd never thought that they would need something so strong, but that had been before the Adephagos had suddenly appeared to devour their world. It hadn't done much good back then, but perhaps now the scales were tipped just far enough in their favor to make a difference.

"Vesperia!"

Hearing that name from the last person he'd expected, his head shot up, eyes drawn directly to meet Fionn's gaze. He really was Fionn now, every inch the proud captain of the Lunar Empire, and he smiled at Vesperia with eyes like a sunny summer sky.

"I know that look in your eyes. Do you really think I'd let you have all the fun?"

"You have to maintain the spell. Keep feeding her the power. She'll need it as soon as I push this greedy bastard back through."

"Let me help you. Even if you say no, I'm going to do it, anyway."

Vesperia couldn't help smiling. "Never could win against you."

Raising his sword, he watched as Fionn did the same and he put his faith in his oldest friend. Fionn could do anything. With a shout, they slammed their swords point first into the roof.

A second spell circle materialized immediately, lines drawn from their focused energies. It spread to cover the roof, and the servants fell back, weakened just by the strength of will powering the arte. They struck in concert, slashing at the Adephagos from two different directions and it writhed as it finally felt whatever passed for pain in its terrible alien flesh. All of a sudden, Fionn was at his side, the other half that Vesperia so desperately missed. They held their blades out, pointing straight ahead as magic flowed into them, called forth from the workings they stood upon and from their own determination to put an end to this threat to the world. Vesperia called up everything he had, everything he was. If this failed, they wouldn't get a second chance. He didn't even have to look to know when Fionn was ready. Acting as one, they unleashed all the force stored within them, a tempest of rage and righteousness that swept forth in a blaze like a shooting star.

The Adephagos didn't stand a chance against such an attack. It was forced back through the conduit, and Estellise screamed, drawing on power freely offered up by everyone present. Raven and Judith, Rita and Fionn, and lastly Vesperia and his sister Estellise: all of those lingering ghosts let go at last to drive away the evil that had once cost them everything. That ancient entity was chased back into the dark and sealed away, far from the life it craved so badly.

With the Adephagos gone, its servants crumbled to dust and faded away. The magic of the circles dimmed and died. Dein Nomos lay in pieces, shattered, its magic entirely depleted by the working. Yuri dropped to his knees and saw the others sag as well, drained and exhausted, back to their normal, everyday selves, but victorious and alive. He smiled, and laughed weakly. Repede padded over and flopped down next to him, licking feebly at his fingers as Yuri ruffled his fur.

The moon beamed serenely down upon them, and if there were a few new trenches dug into its surface, that was a matter for other people and another day. It hung full and bright in the sky, finally at rest. Gazing up at it, Yuri realized that the mercurial presence of Vesperia that had sat heavy in the back of his mind for months was gone. All that remained were a few faded memories from a life he hadn't lived. He was wholly himself once again, and it felt _good_.

"We did it," he murmured. "Flynn, we—"

The smile faded from his face as he saw Flynn hurrying to Estelle's side. He watched them kneeling there together, worn out and shaking so badly that Estelle could barely get a grip on his sleeve. He had to look away before the bitterness welling up in his throat choked him.

* * *

Somehow, they made it back through the city without attracting any of the sort of official attention they'd been lucky enough to avoid over the past several weeks. They didn't talk on the way back, either too busy mulling over their own thoughts, or worried that they would be overheard. Though Estelle was walking at his side and was likely a much more ready source of answers, Flynn found his attention drawn to Yuri's presence trailing a few steps behind them. Ears straining for the sound of his footsteps, he had to continually quash the urge to look over his shoulder and make sure Yuri was still there. He should have been angry at him. He had a right to be, after everything he'd been hiding, after he'd jumped off the fire escape like he had. He wasn't, though, at least not right then. Flynn had gotten a glimpse of Yuri's face as they were leaving Zaude Tower, and he was a little afraid that if he looked back, Yuri would still be wearing that expression. He hadn't looked like someone who had just helped to save the world—almost the opposite. He'd looked defeated.

Their footsteps echoed loudly in the front entrance of the apartment building and they filed into the elevator, three humans and a dog, silent and tired. Estelle pressed the button for her floor and turned the little key that granted her access. Having long before noticed that Yuri saw Estelle home on the nights they came back late, Flynn was surprised when he hit the button for the eleventh floor.

"I need to check on Karol," he said quietly. His words hung awkwardly in the air, garnering no response.

There was a soft 'ping' when the doors opened up to let him out. Estelle caught him by the arm and stood on tiptoe to kiss his cheek.

"Thank you."

A weary smile tugged briefly at the corners of Yuri's mouth before he stepped out, Repede close behind. He had a spare key to see himself in, and Flynn left them to it as he escorted Estelle home.

"You must have a lot of questions," she said, softly.

He smiled despite himself. "That's an understatement."

"I know it's late, but if you'd like to come in—"

"Thank you, but I think all of us could use a good night's sleep. Are you free for lunch tomorrow, though?"

"Of course."

The elevator pinged again, and he walked her to her door. Pausing with one foot inside, she looked up at him.

"Flynn…please don't be angry with Yuri. It was my decision not to tell you."

Somehow, he doubted that. He wished her good night without arguing the point and rode back down to his floor. Yuri hadn't bothered locking the door behind himself, and Flynn found him standing beside the bed, looking down at a sleeping Karol. Repede was stretched out at the foot of the bed, and he yawned as Flynn stepped into the doorway. The note from earlier was still exactly where he had left it. It seemed like Karol had slept through everything.

"You can stay over tonight," Flynn found himself saying. "If you don't want to wake him."

"Thanks."

The flat tone of Yuri's voice didn't sound right. Carefully, he climbed onto the bed, not even bothering to slide under the sheets as he curled up next to his little brother. As he turned to leave, Flynn paused in the doorway and looked back at Yuri's still, dark form. He kept watch there for a long time, until he was certain Yuri had drifted off, before quietly making his way to the couch to try to get some sleep.


	11. Apolune

A/N: Thank you for reading. Hope you enjoyed the story. =) Special thanks and appreciation to Daffy for always taking time to review!

Disclaimer: The characters in this story are from _Tales of Vesperia_ and do not belong to me.

* * *

|Sorry. I can't make it to dinner tonight.|

Yuri stared down at the text he'd just received from Flynn, then abruptly tossed his phone aside onto the kitchen counter. He had to remind himself not to punch the cabinet door. He didn't want to have to ask Estelle's parents to replace another one. Instead, he lifted the lid to the crock pot to check the roast. He didn't really see it even as he leaned over and breathed in the familiar smell. It was one of Flynn's favorites, and he'd known it was on the menu. Obviously, he wasn't just busy. He was avoiding Yuri.

They had defeated the Adephagos early Monday morning, and Yuri hadn't seen Flynn since he and Karol had left his apartment later that day. Flynn hadn't said a word as they left, and Yuri couldn't really blame him. He had to be pissed.

After that, he'd let Flynn have his space. He hadn't tried to talk to him the rest of Monday, or on Tuesday or Wednesday. Finally, he'd gotten tired of the cold war between them and had texted him on Thursday morning with a peace offering of pot roast. That had been hours ago though, and Flynn was only just getting back to him. It was almost enough to make Yuri want to just give up and crawl into bed. Only the knowledge that Flynn wouldn't hold a grudge forever got him back to the couch where Karol was sitting, watching a movie and trying to finish up his homework during commercials. Repede laid his head on Yuri's knee and sighed happily when he got a scratch between the ears. It was a nice, normal, peaceful night…except for the fact that Yuri's best friend currently hated him and might be having some problems directly related to a hasty and unnecessarily dramatic confession that Yuri was really beginning to regret. He was starting to lose hope that this was the sort of problem that could be solved by trading a few punches. With a sigh, he ran his hand through his hair and admitted to himself that he'd fucked up pretty badly this time.

* * *

Friday morning was busier than usual in the convenience store, and Yuri was backed up at the register when Flynn walked in. They locked eyes and he froze for a moment. Although he could tell that Flynn was willing to wait until the line died down, Yuri called Hachette over anyway. He had enough pride to at least finish ringing up the sale he'd been in the middle of—he didn't want to look _desperate_, after all—but he was more than ready to deal with everything that stood so awkwardly between them.

Wordlessly, Flynn followed him behind the counter and down the short hall that led to the back exit. They stepped out into an empty alleyway and Yuri stood to the side, leaning one shoulder against the old brick building. He studied Flynn out of the corner of his eye, looking for any clue as to which way things were going.

"How did Karol do on his test?"

"He passed."

Barely, but he wasn't about to tell Flynn that and let guilt interfere in whatever he had to say. No matter what decision Flynn had come to over the past few days, this was between the two of them. Karol had nothing to do with it.

"That's good." They fell quiet again and Flynn fiddled with the cuffs of his coat sleeves. "I've been talking to the others," he said, abruptly. "I wanted to hear the full story, since you hadn't seen fit to tell me. I assume you had your reasons…?" He sighed when Yuri didn't bother trying to justify himself. "Were you serious when you kissed me?"

The question shouldn't have been so unexpected. Flynn always had been direct. It was just…he'd assumed that the kiss would have been enough for him to get it.

"What do you want me to say, Flynn?"

He nodded a little, as if he understood. "I haven't given you an answer."

"I wasn't looking for one." He pushed away from the wall and started for the door. "Listen, I've got to get back to work, so—"

"Yuri…!"

Glancing back, he caught the fingers of Flynn's outstretched hand curling in as he hesitated. He probably hadn't meant to call out. It was probably just bothering him that he knew he had to let Yuri down, had to admit he had feelings for Estelle and that Yuri was nothing more than a good friend. Yuri didn't want to hear it any more than Flynn wanted to say it. He was turning back to the door when Flynn caught his shoulder, spun him around, and kissed him.

It was brief, nothing more than a quick press of lips, and then Flynn was taking a step back, a lopsided smile on his face and a hint of pink in his cheeks.

"Just so you know," he said, and all Yuri could do was stare, slack-jawed and speechless.

* * *

Technically, Yuri was not supposed to be on the roof of the apartment building, but Estelle's parents had never asked him to return the key he'd conveniently acquired, and it had become something of a haven for him. He was sitting on the edge, staring out over the glittering city gilded by the light of the setting sun. Behind him, he heard the roof access door open and shut. He didn't look back, even as he heard footsteps drawing closer. He knew who it was.

"I got your message." Carefully, Estelle took a seat next to him. "What is it you want to talk about?"

He'd been turning this conversation over in his head since shortly after leaving work, and he hadn't come up with any way to broach the subject except to cut straight to the point.

"Flynn and I are going out."

"Congratulations!" She sounded genuinely happy for him, and he looked over to meet her eyes, surprised.

"You don't mind?"

Her smile faded a little around the edges. "So, you _were_ worried about that. I wasn't sure, and since you never said anything about it, I didn't want to bring it up in case I was wrong." She turned her eyes back out over the city. "I'm not Estellise and Flynn isn't Fionn. You aren't Vesperia, either. We all have our own lives to live. I'm sorry. I should have spoken up sooner. I thought maybe you wanted to let Flynn keep his normal life for the same reasons I did."

"So, you knew."

"About your feelings for Flynn?" She giggled. "I think most people did. Part of the reason that my parents are so comfortable asking you to look out for me when they're out of town is that they've seen the way you look at me, and they've seen the way you look at Flynn. You aren't as subtle as you think." Hiding his face, Yuri groaned as she laughed. "I think they were more worried about letting me have Rita stay over."

Quiet settled between them. It felt strange to think that suddenly, after weeks of things going all sorts of wrong, everything might be going right. He needed to be sure.

"So, everything's okay?"

She smiled at him, one of those big, happy smiles that crinkled up the corners of her eyes and could make him feel better no matter what sort of mood he was in.

"Yes," she said. "Everything is wonderful."

Yuri sighed and looked away, relaxing as he and his sister watched the sun set over the city.


End file.
